Shooting Star
by Nytro
Summary: When a Temsik fragment hits a five-year old Light, the death note world is changed irreparably - Death Note & Ghost Trick crossover, with a couple of Portal references thrown in.
1. Chapter 1

Light Yagami was bored.

Now this was quite a common occurrence for the five-year old; neither his parents nor the dimwitted fools that called themselves his teachers provided anything remotely challenging to his intellect. Right now he was lying in bed with the light off, trying to find something to occupy his mind. It was three o'clock in the morning, and everyone else was asleep in the house.

His sister, two-year old Sayu Yagami, still shared a bed with his parents, but Light was old enough for his own room. This was something of a relief, as he no longer had to pretend to sleep for twelve hours just to placate his parents.

That's not to say that Light didn't sleep, it's just that he slept nowhere near the amount of time a boy his age should. Three or four hours a night was the norm, but it could be less if he had not done anything intelectual the day before.

Which brings us back to the current problem. Light was completely and utterly bored. He was unable to switch off his brain, unable to sleep even a wink tonight. After hours of lying in bed mentally doubling twos in his mind (his usual method, although it had ceased to work lately due to him having the whole sequence memorized up until around 2 to the power of 100) he had given up, switched the light on, and got dressed. He wore a dark blue fluffy coat over his pyjamas, and slippers on his feet. Silently padding to the door, he removed the pencil lead in the hinge and left.

Once in the kitchen, Light made a beeline for the cookie jar. His parents knew that he occasionally snuck cookies out when they weren't looking, but they didn't mind. He was five, after all, and he supposed they found it cute. What they had no idea of was that Light also bought cookies from the supermarket on his way home from school, and replenished the cookie jar almost every day, before eating them at night. He couldn't store the cookies in his room, because his mother Sachiko cleaned it every day; she was sure to find them. But strangely, nobody took any notice of the cookies in the cookie jar. Soichiro assumed Sachiko had bought them, Sachiko assumed Soichiro had. It was like the saying: if you want to hide a letter, find a postbox. Nobody noticed what was right under their noses unless it was in some way out of the ordinary.

Grabbing six cookies, Light tiptoed back to his room. Once there, he opened his window, took a torch from his bedside table (it had been easy to persuade Sachiko to buy it, he simply stated he was afraid of the dark) and jumped out. Landing on the grass a few feet below (he was lucky his room was on the ground floor, otherwise he would be unable to do this), he took off at a brisk pace to the field behind his house.

It was not a cold night, but it was crystal clear, free of any clouds. A few stars shone in the sky, but that was not why he had come. Patiently, he sat down on the coat and waited, staring up at the heavens.

There!

A meteor streaked across the stars, leaving a blazing trail of light, before it faded. Light's eyes grew wide, and he smiled. When his science teacher had told him to research something to do with space - to get him out of the way while she taught the class something that was all common sense to him (really? of course Venus was too hot for extraterrestrial life, the greenhouse effect caused that. Had the rest of the children not heard about Global Warming? it was all over the news! but back on track.) he had chosen meteors. Apparently, the perseid shower was due to peak on the night of August 12th.

Tonight.

Light laughed happily as another meteor blazed through the sky. Munching on a cookie, he got out his map of the night sky that he had drawn last week, and marked the positions and directions of the meteors as he saw them. An hour later, and his map contained many streaks of pencil, all radiating out from a single point.  
'Comet Swift Turtle, I've found you.' The debris field of the comet was the origin of the Perseid shower, although it itself was not bright enough to be seen. Over the last few days Light had been tracking its progress across the sky. Comet Swift-Tuttle, or Swift Turtle as he preferred to call it, was known as 'the single most dangerous object known to humanity' - if it hit the earth then all life would be wiped out. Light had become fascinated by the subject. He had started his research on the meteor that had wiped out the dinosaurs. Apparently, Swift Turtle had 27 times the energy of that one. He loved the fact that something so deadly could produce something so beautiful as a shower of stars, which were really fragments of the comet burning up.

Half an hour more, and the sky was beginning to show signs of the greyness that came before dawn. Light yawned and stood up, folding away his sketches and clicking off his torch. Really, he should probably have tried harder to sleep. Now his parents would know something was up. Oh well, he could always just tell them he had a nightmare. Light found that it was easy to manipulate people at his age, because they believed you were not at their intellectual level. That was true, of course. Light was far above them.

Light was trudging back to his house when a strange noise compelled him to stop and look up. It had sounded like a shout, but there was nobody here. He spotted another meteor, much brighter than all the others, coming in his direction. Wow. If he was really lucky, it might land as a meteorite somewhere near here, perhaps in this very field! It had been Light's ambition to own a piece of Comet Swift Turtle ever since he had researched it. It was stated that although it caused a massive meteor shower every year, the pieces were so small that they always burned up in the atmosphere, and no meteorite had ever been found. Perhaps this would be the first.

Light had just thought this when suddenly there was a searing pain down the right side of his face, continuing down to just over his heart. Too startled to cry out, he collapsed, clutching his chest, where something was burning him, hotter than the kettle steam, hotter than that time when he had stuck his hand in a birthday candle on his third birthday to see what was making the thing glow. Around the pain, the only thing he could think of was 'It hit me...' before he blacked out. His heart stopped soon after, the meteorite having lodged itself in the left atrium. Light Yagami was dead before the sun rose.

'Huh? where am I?' a newly departed soul awoke from sleep. The first rays of dawn were just peeking over the horizon.

'Who am I?' He really had no idea who he was, but he guessed he was the little boy lying in the field. After all, was there anybody else around? At this revelation, memories began to filter into his mind. His name was Light Yagami... he had been hit by a meteor...

Shouldn't he be nonexistent right now? Light was an atheist, but he might have to revise his opinion on that matter. He waited quietly for his judgement - it was best to make a good impression on whatever God there was that he hadn't believed in, and maybe his age would count in his favour.

When no divine judgement came, he found himself quickly getting bored again. Deciding to test his new abilities, he found that he could look around, without eyes. It was really quite odd. The odder thing still was what happened when he concentrated.

The whole world suddenly turned blue, with the grass picked out in black. His body seemed to emanate energy from a glowing orb in his chest. The leaves blowing around in the air stopped moving. Time stood still. Baffled, he reached for the glowing sphere. Touching it (not with an arm, not a leg, but touching it nonetheless), he was suddenly sucked into it.

Opening his eyes (he had eyes again?) he was met by the brown ones of a plain looking boy. They widened in fear and awe, but Light didn't really notice. He was so tired, and the blackness was so inviting... he slipped into sleep.

Mikami Teru was thirteen years old. He was also very unhappy.

Just today he had stood up for a couple of kids that were being beaten up in his class, and what had he to show for it? The bullies had turned on him and laid into him, and he had not a word of thanks from the two he'd saved. Only looks of pity and whispers behind his back.

"That kid..."

"I heard he's part of some weird cult..."

"Wonder if he did it because of the pain..."

"Maybe it's some weird ritual."

"Crazy weirdos."

Mikami even now was shaking with an attempt to control his anger. How dare they mock his beliefs! He was still only a young initiate, but once he was eighteen, he would join the Cult of Stars in service of the All and Only. He is the One who sends righteous judgement on the wicked, and Mikami had already promised his life to Him.

If only he could receive a sign! sometimes it was hard to keep his belief while mocked and judged by all around him. He needed a way to reaffirm his commitment. That was why he was out walking.

The 12th of August was the most Holy night of the year. The Cult of Stars believed that meteors were sacred messages from the All and Only, and tonight was the night of His actions. Mikami knew that if he would ever receive a sign, it would be tonight.

"All and Only!" he cried out to the heavens. "Please, show me your grace... I need you..." Suddenly, a blaze of light filled the sky. Mikami's eyes grew wide with awe. The All and Only had answered him! He watched in reverence as the meteor fell through the sky, before landing somewhere far ahead of him.

With no regard for his own safety, he ran for the source of the light. He must have run for ten minutes or more, and his legs were riddled with scratches and nettle stings. They finally gave out at the edge of a small field, and he collapsed, breathing hard. He watched the sun rise at last. The light illuminated a small figure lying in the field. Mikami got unsteadily to his feet and walked over. A little child was there, unconscious. Mikami gasped when he saw the silvery-white burn mark down the left side of his face and the hole in his shirt. Carefully lifting it over the boys head, he saw a starburst shaped silver scar over his heart. He placed a hand on it. There was no heartbeat, but he could feel something there. He realised that this boy must have been struck by the meteorite, which was lodged inside of him.

Mikami Teru had no doubt that this was a sign from the All and Only. Had the boy been evil, and struck down for his misdeeds? For some reason, that tugged at his heart. The boy could be no older than five. How could he have angered the All and Only so?

But then the boy opened his eyes and looked at Mikami. He had been struck, and yet he was alive. That could only mean one thing. This Boy was sacred at the very least, at the most, he was the Incarnation of the All and Only, sent from Heaven. As his eyes fluttered closed, Mikami picked up his body with endless care. Then he began to walk back to the Cult of Stars, where the festival would be drawing to a close. It marked the beginning of a new chapter in Light's life, and the beginning of a prophecy as the Lord of the Cult of the All and Only.


	2. Chapter 2

_"__Now these points of Data make a beautiful line_

_And we're out of Beta we're releasing on time"_

Click.

A spate of Canadian murders, each bearing the message "I'm watching you" written in the victim's blood on a nearby wall.

Too cliche. Click.

A massive diamond heist, where the culprits had gotten away with more than a billion dollars worth of the precious stones.

Mined illegally anyway. Click.

A painting stolen from a museum, then found two weeks later in the same place, totally unscathed.  
What was the point of that? Click.

"You are becoming very choosy, Ryuzaki."

"Nothing here catches my interest, Watari. Did you bring the cake as requested?"

"Yes, Ryuzaki."

The World's Greatest Detective, also known as L, was bored. He was looking through the list of cases Watari had compiled, trying to find one that interested him. The trouble was that he had already solved all the good ones, and the rest were either just requests from countries to find and return lost money/paintings/jewels, or murders where the police didn't have enough evidence to suspect anyone.

Then a notice popped up on his computer, alerting him to the fact that "ImBored(txt)' " had been created. L smiled, before minimising what Watari was having him do and opening the file in notepad. There was one line of text running across the screen.

"I had nothing to do, so I decided to talk to you."

L typed in his reply, ignoring Watari's protests that he shouldn't neglect his work.

"I suppose Star-kun also finds the case list a little lacking today." He pressed enter to start a new line of text, and watched.

More text began to appear in the document, though L was not typing on the keyboard.

"I see no reason to chase after paintings when they have already been returned. In fact, I find myself siding with the thief, who was so obviously pointing out flaws in the Louvre's security system." The text started a new line, the signal that Star was finished with his reply. L began to type his.

"Star-kun is sympathising with criminals? I am beginning to worry for him." The use of honorifics was no giveaway, as they were in fact typing in Japanese. Star always used the home language of the country L was residing in. L thought it was a subtle way of irritating him, reminding him that Star always knew where he was.

When L had first discovered, some seven years back, that his computer had been hacked, he had been thoroughly angry and a little scared. He had destroyed the offending laptop and instructed Watari to buy a new one. It too, had been hacked within seconds of him loading it up. L had attempted to switch countries to get away from the mysterious hacker, but to no avail. After a few weeks of trying to shut out and ignore, he was forced to acknowledge the other's superior skills. He started answering to the messages left to him on text files.

He learnt that the other's alias was simply Star, or *. He was the person who gave tip-offs to police around the world on cases, always delivered by a text file popping up randomly on a computer. Most of the agencies around the world had come to the conclusion that * was simply one of L's many aliases, used when he did not want to put his name on a case.

This would have been fine with L - Star did not acknowledge the claims, and it added to L's reputation without him actually having to do anything, plus Star only tipped off the police on cases beneath L's notice - if it weren't for the fact that Star hacked his computer. All the time. Firewalls were circumvented like they were nothing, and no anti-virus software worked. At one time, he had taken the computer apart and run a diagnostic to see where the text was coming from. The results were surprising, to say the least. Even if it did not pinpoint the exact area of intrusion, L had assumed that they would in some way be filtering through the internet connection - after all, even the mighty Star needed internet to chat long distance. He was proved totally wrong. The computer had nothing filtering through, and it seemed that the text was typed in the normal way. He had even checked the cable leading from the keyboard to the computer, and the variations in electrical current had shown that the text was being typed by someone using it. Which lead L to one conclusion.

Star had hacked the keyboard as well. How was that even possible? It was at that point that L admitted defeat, that Star was a better hacker than anyone, including him.

"I'm not sympathising with criminals, I'm laughing at how the Louvre got infiltrated twice by the same person, once when they were on high alert. It shows how pathetic security systems are in even the most high-security environments."

"Is Star making a jibe towards me?"

"Maybe."

"Star may wish to know that it is only himself who is able to infiltrate my systems."

"I am honoured to receive a compliment from the great detective L (sarcasm)"

Light Yagami, also known as Star, had just finished typing the message when he was alerted.

'Star-sama, I think you should look at the news...'

'Thank you Sol.' Sol was under strict instructions not to bother him during these times unless the matter was urgent and connected to CST. He was unable to break that restriction, being who he was, so it must be something of great importance. While Light was able to access the internet from L's computer, L would be aware of him doing it. L could never know about CST - nobody could. So he left L's computer and jumped over the internet back to his own, where he could safely and anonymously search for whatever had alerted Sol.

"The great detective L is honoured to compliment the great hacker/criminal sympathiser Star (sarcasm)"

...

"Is Star-kun still there?"

L watched the computer, perplexed. Star had not responded for half an hour now. Usually he would disconnect and delete the text file at the end of a conversation. It was unheard of for Star to simply leave without tidying loose ends. What had happened to make him drop everything - including a conversation with L - to see to it? He munched on the cake Watari had brought, calculating probabilities in his head.

"...Sorry for the wait." Ah, so Star was back. He masked his relief at the man's continuing safety by poking a bit of fun.

"Did Star-kun fall asleep at the computer? It is awfully late to stay up. It must be past his bedtime."

"Says the insomniac." If L had not known Star so well, he would have been unnerved by the hacker's knowledge of his sleeping habits. But Star could track him anywhere, and hack his computer. It made sense that the cameras he set up were hacked as well.

"Will Star-kun tell me the reason? Otherwise I will have to assume he was, in fact, sleeping. I am sure that the real reason is much less embarrassing." The request was poorly concealed, but they both knew that Star would figure it out no matter how well L hid it.

"Actually, I finally found an interesting case. I thought you might want to look." a notice popped up on L's computer.

'Downloading KiraCase(exe) ' Kira case? interesting name. Kira... probably a version of the english word 'killer'. Whatever it was, it was sure to be interesting. Star did not contact him like this over trivial cases.  
'Download Complete. Run KiraCase(exe)?' L clicked 'yes'. Copies of japanese news reports arranged themselves across the screen.

"Murderer killed by heart attack."

"Rapist dies of cardiac arrest."

"Hostage rescue - criminal dead, suspected heart attack."

"Fourth dead in a day - coincidence or conspiracy?"

"Heart attack victims mount - all criminals."

"Kingdom of God has Arrived! Criminals are punished by divine justice."

L chewed his thumb looking at the headlines. Star would not send him false information, and this was unlikely to be coincidence. He typed Star a reply.

"Now this seems interesting, doesn't Star-kun agree? Although I must say it is unusual for Star-kun to request my aid on a case. Does he have any motives I might wish to know about?"

"I'm not going to answer that one, L. Interpol have already noticed the deaths. They are holding a meeting to discuss the matter in a week's time. They will invite Watari there to seek your aid. I was merely giving you advance warning."

"If Star-kun says so. I am inclined to believe there is something he is not telling me."

"You're right. There is. Goodnight."

Ten seconds later, 'I'mBored(txt) ' vanished from L's computer. L didn't really notice, as he was too busy looking over the contents of ' '. How Star had managed to compile so much in half an hour was astonishing, but L had no doubt this would be one of the most interesting cases of his life.

So when Watari came into the room again and asked if he had chosen a case to work on, he was able to turn around with a big smile - it looked rather creepy on his face - and say with complete surety,

"Yes, I have."

Jumping back to his five-year old body, Light made a critical analysis of the situation. L obviously had no prior knowledge of CST, or he would have reacted differently. Most promising, he had implied that he would respect Star's wishes about his motives.

Munching on a chocolate chip cookie, he assessed future plans of action. If this Kira possessed a CST fragment, then a direct confrontation would be essential. The most promising course to take was to let L handle the detection of the culprit, and then step in to clear things up before the authorities found out about CST. Light had no problem acknowledging L's superior skills and contacts when it came to creating a list of suspects - after all, Light was in his own league when it came down to choosing between the last few. L never had and never would be able to match him in that respect, because Light possessed CST, and was the All and Only's chosen one.

He laughed at that, a clear, bell-like sound. Really, humans were so easy to manipulate. One demonstration of supernatural power and they believed you were sent from God. Tracing a finger down the silver scar that dominated the right side of his face, his neck, and the starburst over where his heart used to beat, Light's hand came to rest on his necklace. One of the two - now three, if Kira really was a Tricker - fragments of CST in existence, it was in the shape of a moon, and had once hung on the collar of a cat, until he had recovered it from the humans. He would recover this third fragment too, to keep it away from the selfish desires of humanity. Even now, someone was using CST's power over death to possess and kill. If the whole world found out, then chaos would reign. It was much better this way. Humans were inherently evil, and the only way to stop them committing acts of evil was to remove the temptation.

...with that in mind, he once again jumped to the computer, his corpse falling lifeless on the bed. It was time to do some investigating of his own.


	3. Chapter 3

_"Anyway, this cake is great_

_It's so delicious and moist"_

"...name is Lind L. Tailor, more widely known as L."

Light looked at the TV curiously, staring at the man on the screen. So this was L's plan? It was true that he had left the detective on his own ever since he had first made contact about the case, preferring to use the time to scour Tokyo for the telltale signs of a CST fragment. There had been nothing so far, but only 37.8% of the city had been searched, and no guarantee that Kira even resided here. Light knew Kira must be Japanese, and was relying on L's method to narrow down the search area for him.

He sat in half-lotus on a cushion, in front of the television. Watching as Lind L. Tailor - who was most certainly not L - continued his address to the world (Light had checked, and the broadcast was only airing in the Kanto region), He felt no surprise or anger when the masquerader collapsed, clutching his chest. In fact, on performing an emotional scan, he found that he felt satisfaction at the impostor's death.

'Nobody has the right to impersonate L.'

Light even laughed out loud when the deception was revealed. Oh, how silly Kira must feel now! It was simply more proof of the hypothesis he had cultivated for years - humans were so incredibly easy to bend and twist to your will.

A small black cat, no more than a kitten, slunk into the room. Sol's latest body. Unlike Light, Sol had no fragment of CST within him to keep his body from decay. He was forced to rely on his powers for possession of others - he much preferred cats to any other animal, for an obvious reason. Sol jumped into Light's lap, where he stroked it absentmindedly.

"I was watching the broadcast." a voice spoke in Light's head. He nodded.

"Were you able to decipher the meanings?"

"I was." Light detected a note of pride in the cat's voice - that would have to be carefully controlled, lest Sol decide to become more independent, as Kira seemed to be doing.

"What did you think about L's strategy?"

"I did not see how L was able to make Kira kill him. Surely Kira knew it was better to keep silent?"

"Just another example of human Pride. L was able to manipulate Kira because Kira is weak, guided by emotion. Be wary yourself of strong emotion. It impedes logical thought, and causes decisions that do not benefit." Light waved a hand at the tv, which was now showing a journalist's comment on the surprise broadcast, to emphasise his point. "Useless notions such as pride and greed are also detrimental. It is what sets us apart from them."

"I will beware. Thank you, Star-sama." The cat slunk off. Light sighed and rested a his head on one hand. Truly, the broadcast contained much more information than L would find out. He calculated the distance between Lind L. Tailor and the camera at two metres, and between the speaker with L's voice and the body at three. Kira's reach must be somewhere between the two, which was large for a newly created Tricker.

Certainly it was more than Sol's one metre, though Light himself could reach as far as ten. Kira's Trick type also seemed to be manipulation of living bodies, like Sol. Perhaps he could perform a few experiments to see if Sol could cause heart attacks. It would certainly be a useful skill to have. He clicked off the TV, but continued to stare at the now black screen.

Then the door to Light's rooms opened slightly, and a hesitant voice sounded from outside.

"Lord?"

"Enter, Teru-kun." The door opened fully and Mikami Teru, now an adult, cautiously stepped into the room, holding a paper bag. He walked warily across the floor, which was totally clean apart from the stuffed toys that were scattered around. He set down the paper bag within reaching distance of the cushion, looking at the floor so as to not meet Light's face.

"Lord, I have done as you asked."

"Thank you, Teru-kun." The man nodded and backed away skillfully, careful not to turn his back on Light or touch the contents of the room - both were cardinal transgressions in the Cult of Stars. Once Teru had reached the door, Light spoke to him again.

"Teru-kun, have you seen the news report?" Teru hesitated and answered cautiously.

"No, Lord. I shall watch it immediately, if that is what my Lord desires."

"Yes, do. I believe Kira seems to be one of my kind." At this, Teru gasped and looked up, his eyes meeting Light's. Light raised an eyebrow. Teru's eyes grew wide with fear and he fell to the floor, in a stance of prayer.

"All and Only, please forgive me, for my unworthy eyes have tainted your Chosen One by looking upon His figure, and I submit yourself to your divine punishment-"

"Do that later, Teru-kun." Teru's eyes widened, but he did not make the mistake of looking up again.

"Lord, I do not understand. Surely I-"

"You will need to punish yourself, but for now you will carry out my instructions. Watch and learn all you can about Kira, and share the news with the rest of the Cult. There is a large chance that this Kira is not Chosen, but an impostor. For this reason, do not declare support for or against Kira. I will meet him myself, using the All and Only's power."

"Yes, my Lord." and Teru backed out the door, which closed soundlessly. Light listened to his footfalls as he descended the stairs, back down to the living quarters of the rest of the cult. When they had fallen silent, Light got up from the cushion and walked over to the bed. It was not a proper bed, but an indent in the floor lined with cushions and stuffed toys. Light curled up inside it and left his body there. It was time to talk to L.

'File Broadcast(txt) has been created. Would you like to open this file?' L clicked the 'Yes' option, and watched as the familiar notepad file flashed up on screen.

"You totally beat Kira. Nice work."

"Star-kun is familiar with my broadcast? Perhaps Star-kun lives in Kanto, and saw it on TV?"

"Perhaps. Or maybe I was hacking your computer, listening first hand."

"That does seem likely, given evidence of Star-kun's ability to infiltrate systems where he is not wanted."

"You don't want me here? I'm hurt, L."

"Did Star-kun have a reason for contacting me?"

"Actually, I wanted to ask you if you had gained any new insights about Kira from the broadcast."

"I now have 83% certainty that Kira requires a name and a face to kill."

"...if you say so."

"Star-kun does not seem convinced. Would he like to present his alternate theory?"

"That would require divulging information I do not want made public, not to anyone. Anyways, I may be totally wrong in my assumptions."

"L can keep a secret for Star-kun."

"Referring to yourself in the third person now? It was bad enough referring to me like that. First sign of insanity, you know."

"L thinks the first sign of insanity is talking to mysterious computer programs."

"Oh, so I'm a computer program now? L, you are beginning to slip down the sanity ladder."

"Logically, since I have never met Star-kun in person, I have no evidence to prove that Star-kun is a human."

"And what would you do if I wasn't human?"

"Nothing. Star-kun is my first friend, after all."

"First friend is a computer program... tell me, L, have the men in white coats seen you yet?" L pouted at the screen. He was actually quite proud of the hypothesis that Star was a computer program, and to see it ridiculed was a bit annoying.

"Star-kun is very amusing. I know a way to tell if Star is an Artificial Intelligence."

"What is that?"

"This statement is false."

"Really? You think telling me a paradox will cause an AI's brain to crash? Besides, you can escape that paradox by assuming the statement is neither true nor false."

"This statement is not true."

"blesrhugvsfladkjvnS~ {gfkj'rtorigfOitWSDRF30[4-[#5T 12L340EOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH'][0EIPDFJAW'SPIP']POJ'POJ'POJUW;EOURGTWERUGFKSN'DWHIE4TYFISiyuegidrlighjsre;dlkjsrtohgp..."

"Star-kun?"

"...lol."

"For a second there, I was worried Star-kun was serious."

"What, first you attempt to kill me, and then you worry about me?"

"I was merely testing a hypothesis. I can now say with 89% certainty that Star-kun is not an artificial intelligence."

"That's nice. Did you have any other deductions to share?"

"Based on the timing of the killings, Kira is a student."

"You are a genius, L."

"I know."

"The line between genius and insanity is a fine one, you know."

"I know."

"I think you crossed it a couple of miles back."

"Why thank you, Star-kun."

"You consider being called insane a compliment?"

"I do. Does Star-kun think the same way?"

"I know that if somebody called me sane, it would be a grave insult."

"That is nice to know. I will avoid use of the word in future, Star-kun. In the meantime, Watari-san will be arriving back from interpol soon, with my cake. I bid Star-kun farewell."

"Just one thing before you go, L."

"Hmm?"

"...the Cake is a Lie."

As the words 'File Broadcast(txt) has been deleted' appeared in a messagebox on L's computer, L couldn't help but ponder the meaning of the last message. He knew the reference, of course, but was unable to decipher Star's meaning in sending it. Was it possible for Star to know that he, L, had helped develop the game Portal (under an alias, Keith Maxwell), in a fit of boredom? He shook his head, smiling. Of course it was possible.

"L, I brought your cake from the shop!" Watari opened the door to the hotel rooms to see L sitting in his thinking position in front of the laptop.

"Talking to Star again, I see?" L looked up.

"Cake?" he asked hopefully, his thumb on his lips.

"Yes L, I got you cake. Here." He handed over the box, which had the words 'Sunshine Bakery' written in fancy writing on the top. L swiped it and began to open the box.

"Star-kun an I were having an interesting conversation about the Kira... case..." L tailed off, staring at the cake. "Watari, when you picked up the box, had it been tampered with in any way?"

"Is something wrong with the cake, L?" Watari frowned. L wordlessly turned the box towards him.

L's usual order of strawberry cheesecake was sitting there, unharmed. However, in big black letters somebody had iced onto the top the words "The Cake is Not True". Watari looked perplexed.

"I don't understand, L. Maybe the staff mixed up your order with somebody else's?" L shook his head, his brain whirring at a mile a minute. 'The Cake is a Lie'... 'The Cake is Not True'...it was a paradox. The same one he had tested Star with. L himself had suggested the paradox, and he was fairly certain Star had not manipulated him to do so. That meant Star had had a time window of less than fifteen minutes to ice the cake... minus, of course, the time it had taken for Watari to walk back here.

"Watari, how long ago did you collect this cake from the Sunshine Bakery?"

"Fifteen minutes ago, I think."

L was perplexed. That meant that either Star worked at Sunshine bakery and happened to be in charge of icing his cake while talking to him, or... actually, he could not form an alternate hypothesis. But the thought of Star being a baker... laughable. L had to admit it, Star had him utterly stumped.

(Fifteen minutes earlier)

"Sol."

"Star-sama, you wanted me?" The two were in the Ghost World, talking while their bodies curled up lifelessly in the bed.

"I would like you to go to the Sunshine Bakery, via the phone lines. Take control of one of the staff and find a strawberry cheesecake. It should be in the 'deliveries' section. Ice the words 'The Cake is Not True', and then act as if nothing has happened. Relinquish control as soon as possible and come back here."

"I... do not understand, Star-sama?"

"I will explain when you return. For now, follow my instructions."

"...I understand, Star-sama." And Sol jumped to the phone, before vanishing. Light allowed himself a laugh. How would L draw conclusions from this? Jumping back to L's computer, he could not contain his mirth.

"...lol."

"For a second there i was worried Star-kun was serious."

Linda, a sweet old woman working at Sunshine Bakery, suddenly came to sitting in a chair.

"How odd... I came over all funny." Her eyes caught sight of the box of strawberry cheesecake she had been putting the finishing touches on. "I'm sure I don't remember wrapping it up..." She shook her head. "I must have had a senior moment. Anyway, must get this box out front. That kind old gentleman will be here soon for his order! ...why am I talking to myself?" And she merrily hummed a tune as she handed the cake over to Watari, not suspecting in the slightest that she had been an unwilling part of a great detective's scheme.


	4. Chapter 4

_"This was a triumph_

_I'm making a note here: Huge success._

_It's hard to overstate my satisfaction"_

"L, you need to stop obsessing over this. The Kira case requires your attention."

"Watari, I am aware that the Kira case is much less trivial. But I have been unable to make any new deductions regarding it, so it is useless to ponder further. I would do better to concentrate my attention on finding the identity of Star-kun." Watari held his head in his hands.

"L, please! Stop playing this childish game of hide-and-seek. Concentrate on finding Kira! More criminals are dying every day!"

"You don't understand, Watari. I performed background checks on all the staff. They can't be Star. The woman, Linda Hardman, who you say usually bakes my cake, is eighty-four and retired. There is no way that she is Star. So how did he do it? I would say phone calls, but you picked up the cake barely thirty seconds after I mentioned the Strengthened Liar paradox. That is not enough time to call someone and explain what to do, and I even checked the phone records. Sunshine Bakery is not listed as having a phone number, nor did Linda have a mobile. How did he do it?"

"L, this is unhealthy! I tell you what, I will make you a deal. If you can make a breakthrough on the Kira case, then I will personally take you to Sunshine Bakery to ask Linda questions. How does that sound?"

"Fine, Watari." L switched on his laptop again, and began to go through the evidence compiled. The most obvious change was in Kira's killing habits - now, one criminal was dying every hour. It lowered the chances of Kira being a student... or did it? Kira could be doing it to mock them, show them he could control the time of death. He might even be doing it to take suspicion off himself, as a student. But that would mean...

...L's head shot up. That would mean Kira had access to police information! He began frantically looking through the members of the police force. What he was looking for, he didn't quite know. Watari noticed this sudden increase in activity.

"L, have you found anything?"

"Kira is most likely a member of the police force or one of their close families." Watari's eyes widened.

"How would you know?"

"Kira changed his killing pattern right after I presented a hypothesis that identified him based on this previous pattern. This suggests Kira was not only aware of police force information, but he felt that being suspected as a student would narrow the net. Kira is therefore likely to be a student in the families of the police officers. I suggest we call in an outside group - I would recommend the FBI, as I have worked well with them in the past - to tail members of these families and watch for suspicious activity."

"L, you did it! A breakthrough!"

"Does this mean we can go to the bakery now?" Watari sweatdropped.

"Uh, sure. You can come with me when I pick up your cakes tomorrow." L pouted.

"Why not today?"

"Because you still need to focus on the case. Get those FBI agents in. What is the percentage of Kira being among those families?"

"Over seventy percent."

"Then we must proceed with all haste."

As L began typing commands into his computer, he thought of a friendly fellow detective. 'Maybe I should inform Star of this. Actually, I have no way to be able to, do I? And there is a twenty-eight percent chance that Star has prior connections with Kira. He said before that there was something he is not telling me about the case - and I did mention my hypothesis that Kira was a student to him first. If Kira is not found among the families of the NPA, the likelihood of Star and Kira being one and the same will rise to over fifty percent. I do not want to suspect him, but the evidence does seem to point that way.'

A young boy walked through the streets, with a black kitten trailing behind him. The boy had blue hair with white streaks in, which was obviously dyed. The clothes he wore complemented this. They were fluffy and blue,with white stripes that looked a bit like those of a tiger, and a blue rucksack with a star pattern. He had a long scar down the right side of his face, silver like the colour of a recent burn. As he trailed through the alleys, he was watched by a pair of greedy eyes. Once their owner was sure there was nobody else about, he stepped out of the shadows, holding a knife.

"Hello, little child. What might you be doing here? It's dangerous to be out on the streets, at this time of night... all alone..." The boy did not flinch or scream at the sight of the knife. Instead, he scooped the kitten into his arms and continued walking. The man, angry at being ignored, shoved the boy up against the alley wall.

"I'll show you what happens when you don't listen to your elders, little girl, hehe..." He held the knife to the boy's throat grazing the skin. The boy, once again, did not panic. Instead, he merely spoke one word.

"Sol." it was both a statement and a command. The Man's eyes narrowed in confusion, flew open wide in an emotion approaching panic, and then went totally blank. He withdrew the knife and bowed in apology.

"I am sorry, Star-sama. I should not have let him get so close to you." Light traced the wound on his neck, which had already healed completely.

"There is no need for apology, Sol. I am aware of your short range. Come, let us continue. There is a dead end just up ahead."

Barely a minute later, they had reached the alley's end. There was a den, of sorts, with a few rags and a sleeping bag, as well as tins of food. Light pulled out a cushion from his rucksack, and sat down in half-lotus position. He set down the now limp body of the cat in his lap. Sol remained standing. Light rummaged around in the rucksack again and putted out a paper bag. Grabbing a cookie from inside, he looked at Sol.

"We are attempting to find possible ways for you to cause a heart attack." Sol nodded, and the testing began.

Five hours later, when the sky was beginning to show the grey of pre-dawn, Light finally gave up. Hypnotic trance, fear - none of it caused what he was looking for. He had even asked Sol to let the man's conscious surface temporarily, provoking a fierce battle for control. Not even that could induce cardiac arrest, though it was amusing to watch the terror on the man's face as he steadily fought against Sol.

"Are you... Kira?" He had asked, eyes wide and afraid. Light had nodded, hoping the fear reaction would be enough. When it was obvious it wasn't, he waved for Sol to regain control and started a different avenue of investigation.

Now he was ninety-eight percent sure that if Kira was a Tricker, his powers centred around the ability to kill using heart attacks. That was somewhat a relief, as Kira would not be able to control a victim's actions like Sol. At the end of the testing, Light handed Sol a pill to swallow. He did, and immediately began to choke and gag. Falling to the floor, his shuddery breathing ceased.

"Goodbye. The world is better off without you. And if we ever meet in the afterlife, take note. I am not a Girl, I'm a Boy." Just because his current hairstyle made him look effeminate, did not mean that he appreciated being called a girl. Light held out the cat to the corpse, and the previously limp kitten regained life. Then the two walked out of the alley the way they had come in. Nobody bothered them, and they were able to return to the penthouse they lived in before anyone of the Cult was awake - the Cult of Stars did not get up early in the mornings, due to watching stars late into the night. Once inside, Light left his body to continue scouring tokyo for the telltale signs of CST, while Sol went to find a new host. His old body had been dead too long after Sol had suppressed its consciousness too many times, and was starting to smell.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, Light returned to the apartment. Exiting onto the balcony, he checked there was no-one looking before jumping off. He landed in a heap on the floor of an alley, with a crash that showed nobody could possibly survived the fall. He got up ten seconds lated, fully healed except for the dust that stuck to his clothes from the landing. Brushing the worst off, he headed off, giving no indication that what he had just done was and deviation from the norm. In truth, it wasn't. Light often did this when he wanted to leave without the Cult seeing him.

Ten minutes later, the bell on the door of the Sunshine Bakery jingled as Light entered.

"Ah! Tsuki-chan!" Linda's voice called out from the counter. "I have your usual!" Light made his way up to the counter, where the old woman was waiting, clutching a large paper bag and a glass of milk. He handed over 500 yen and nodded his thanks before scouring the room for a place to sit. And then he did a double take.  
L was sitting at one of the tables, watching him. Light tried to show no emotion, but L obviously did not miss the way his eyes lingered on the man for a fraction of a second longer than anyone else. As Light made his way over to the table he had chosen, he took the opportunity to study L and his companion - Watari, he supposed. He also took the opportunity to scold himself for acting rashly and illogically. After the Cake incident, he should have realised that Sunshine Bakery would be under increased surveillance. By reacting to the sight of L, he had put himself under suspicion of a connection to Star. It was also highly likely that L now suspected Star of being Kira, so he was under suspicion of that as well.

Picking a table right next to L's - there was no point pretending he had no interest in the man, it would only increase suspicion at this point - he hopped up onto it. The table, that is,using the chair as a step. He got some funny looks, as he always did, but as soon as they saw the scar they hid their heads and looked away, trying not to stare. Light pulled out his cushion and sat down half-lotus, pulling a cookie out of the paper bag with one hand and holding the glass of milk in the other. He proceeded to much on the cookie, figuring out a course of action as he did so. He had three options.

One was to leave the bakery immediately, throw off the trail of whoever L would assign to follow him, and not come back. This would not eliminate suspicion of Star, but he would be able to function normally. The disadvantage of this method would be the loss of the Sunshine Bakery cookies, which were far away the best he had ever tasted (well, not exactly, as he had no sense of taste - but their texture seemed to increase his cognitive skills by 30%). He dismissed the method.

Two was to stay in the bakery, and act as if his interest in L was merely due to the man's weird looks. The advantages of this method was that he would be able to return normally, and that suspicion on him would gradually abate. The main disadvantage of the method was the fact that if he ever slipped up, suspicion would not be of him being Star, but of being Kira. Star would have no reason to not reveal himself to L if L knew who he was.

The third option was to claim a connection to Star (his physical age was five, and Star had been operating for seven years - he could not claim to be Star himself.). This would allow him to be close to L and in the heart of the case, where it would be easier to locate the CST fragment. The disadvantages would be that joining with L would severely limit his freedoms, as he had no doubt L would all but force him to move into the hotel with him. L's childlike nature would also lead to him giving up information not about the case, and may even culminate with him revealing the existence of CST. How L would react to the information, Light did not know. He had no prior experience from which to base his deductions.

Light had to admit, the third option sounded attractive. He had desired a close confidante, and L was the best person he could think of. However, a desire for companionship was what drove him to this decision. It would be acting illogically to restrict his freedoms in that way. Light therefore chose option two, the most rational option.

"Hello!" Light's eyes flicked to L, who had spoken.

"Hello, person-san. What's your name?" He was interested to know which alias L would pick.

"Ryuzaki. What's yours?"

"Tsuki." It was the alias he used here, with the irony being that it was actually Light's real name, or the spelling of it anyway.

"So, Tsuki-chan, is there any reason you decided to sit on the table next to mine?"

"Ryuzaki-san looked all funny. Did you forget to brush your hair or put on shoes this morning?"

L had no answer prepared. Nobody had been that confrontational with him. He was caught off-guard, for once in his life.

"That is odd. Most people find a problem with the way I sit."

"Nope! I know that position is good for thinking things from but I like meditating on a cushion cause it looks cooler. So, did you really forget your shoes? You must've been really sleepy or something cause I think you'd've noticed while walking. Unless you don't ever wear shoes, and you're so used to it that you didn't even notice! But if that was the case, you wouldn't've forgotten to wear shoes, you'd've deliberately not worn them..."

"What about Tsuki-chan? what did she do this morning?" Light tilted his head to the side thoughtfully.

"Is Ryuzaki-san a stranger? Because people always say not to talk to strangers. But I guess, since I talked to Ryuzaki-san, he's not a stranger, right? So what was the point of not talking to him? People tell me really confusing things, sometimes. But I guess I should be fine as long as I don't take candy from you." At this, L pulled his cake towards him possessively. Light laughed.

"Well, I might see you around sometime, Ryuzaki-san. Bye!" And he handed the now empty glass of milk back to Linda, before walking out with the rest of the cookies. The bell jingled as he exited the shop. L looked thoughtfully at the closing door.

"Ryuzaki, is there something wrong?" Watari asked him anxiously. L shook his head and began to eat his cake again. There had been something different about that girl, but he couldn't quite figure out what it was. No, of course he knew what it was. That massive scar down the side of Tsuki's face. It was humiliating to know that he, L, had been blinded by the norms of society. His interest in Tsuki was merely the irrational desire to stare at the disfigurement.

Maybe so, but he still found that girl intriguing. He made his mind up to ask about her later.

Once L had finished the cake he had been eating, he went up to the counter to begin the real reason for his visit.

"Did you want anything else to eat, Ryuzaki-san?"

"No, thank you. Can I ask you about something?"

"Of course. Your friend Eraldo-san is a loyal customer, so I'm happy to answer any queries you might have!"

"I wanted to know a bit about how the cakes here are made."

"Oh, that's wonderful! It's lovely to have a bright young man like you take an interest in our work here!" Linda smiled, showing false teeth. "Well, every cake made here is assigned to one person to make. Take for example, that wonderful strawberry cheesecake Eraldo-san ordered yesterday. I was in charge of that one!" She puffed out her chest in pride.

"Do you also ice the cakes you make?"

"Of course! And we package them too! Though we don't ice cheesecakes, of course. That would be silly!" L studied her expression and voice intently, but could find no hint of a lie. That avenue of investigation was dead. Although it was silly of him to assume Star would be found that easily.

"I also wanted to ask about Tsuki-chan, the girl who entered the shop earlier. Do you know anything about her?" At this, Linda's face fell slightly.

"Yes, I know her. She's a real regular customer - comes here at four o'clock every day, regular as clockwork. Buys cookies and milk, eats about half the cookies, and saves the rest for later. Never short of money, but no parents around either. She never gave me a last name, so she could be an orphan. But do you know what I think?" She leaned in conspiratorially. "Abuse, maybe. I think that's where the" She traced a line down the side of her face "where that, you know, comes from. I've never asked about it, but I tell her she's fine to talk to me about anything she wants."

"Interesting. Have you told these suspicions to anybody?" Linda shook her head.

"Lord, no! Who would believe me? Everyone thinks she's just a bit of an odd girl - have you seen the way she sits? On the table... well, it's funny to see people react to her doing that. And I have no last name for her, so I can't go to the police. I do give her a special discount, though. Buy a bag of those cookies and you get the milk free... there I go again, rambling on!"

"Well, thank you for sharing that information." Ryuzaki decided to buy a bag of the same cookies Tsuki had. He returned to Watari, who was looking at him oddly. Obviously he had noticed L's interest in the girl. L answered the unspoken question.

"She may be a potential candidate for Wammy's." It would not do to mention any of his suspicions about her, as he had already disapproved of him searching for Star.

L took a bite out of one of the cookies. It was double chocolate, and surprisingly tasty. 'not as tasty as cheesecake - still, it comes very close.' Sipping the milk (it had come free), he contemplated the Kira case. The FBI agents would arrive in Japan in a few hours time, and would begin their investigations tomorrow. Perhaps he should assign one of them to trail Tsuki... no, that was a bit too far. The girl was simply a curiosity, not a suspect. And Watari would be incredibly annoyed with him for essentially stalking a five-year old girl.

Still, maybe...


	5. Chapter 5

_"But there's no sense crying over every mistake_

_Your just keep on trying till you run out of cake"_

Light noticed almost immediately on returning to his penthouse apartment that his deductive reasoning abilities had decreased by a significant amount. He, somewhat alarmed with these events, immediately assumed his thinking position on a cushion and began a thorough scan.

The results were as follows:

In the last twenty-four hours, a drop in thought processes had occurred that decreased his abilities by 34%. This was a serious problem, and needed to be fixed immediately.

12% of this had been caused by guilt over the death of the rapist in the alley, or fear that the body would be discovered and traced back to him. To solve this, he went over in detail what the man had done - the way he had held the knife, it was obvious he was skilled in using it. That meant there was a large chance he was a murderer as well, who killed his victims. This was the exact type of criminal that Kira judged most harshly, so it was unlikely the man had ever been caught for his crimes, or death by heart attack would have been swift. This means the man would have been unknown by the police, and free to kill more. By executing him, Light had probably saved innocent lives.

The body could not be traced back to him because of the method of death. There were no wounds on the body to show the method of death, and the poison used was designed to cause a heart attack, and break down in six hours. If the body was ever found, then people would assume death by Kira had occurred.

6% of the drop in reasoning had occurred to lack of nutrition in Light's system, from the body remaining active through the night without much extra food. Although Light did not require sleep, the body needed more energy the longer Light possessed it. He quickly rectified this problem by munching on more cookies.

11% of it was caused by, or related to, dehydration. A bottle of water from the fridge solved this (All and Only forbid that the Cult of Stars should ever make their Chosen One drink tap water)

The remaining 71% was caused by the human desire for companionship. Light spent a while mulling over how to solve this. He could easily ignore it, of course, but this would not help him. By studying patterns of human behaviour, Light had learned that loneliness would only worsen with time. It was best to treat the problem as early as possible. Light considered possible solutions.

1.) Spend more time with Sol, allowing the other more freedom to say and do as he wished. This was the least disruptive option, but it still would counteract the last three years of training that Light had put into Sol's character, making him less obedient.

2.) He could make an outing to a place where children his age were known to play, such as a park. This would allow him to indulge in childlike games such as hide-and-seek, although it would provide little in the way of intellectual stimulation.

3.) He could seek out L again, under the guise of Tsuki, and increase suspicion on himself. He had already decided against this, but it was included in the list as a last resort. Also included in this option was the ability to talk to L through a text file, as Star.

An hour later, Sol cautiously stepped through the door, to find Light waiting patiently for him.  
"That's a nice body, Sol. I like the markings." Sol had chosen a young male tabby, likely from the colony inhabiting the streets. Sol hopped into Light's lap, where Light began to examine the markings more closely.

"Are you ready for an excursion, Sol?" Sol looked at him oddly, but nodded his whiskered head. Together they exited the building, Light wrapping Sol's body in his arms to prevent damage from the fall. That, however, did not prevent the painful jolt.

"Ugh, couldn't you throw me up in the air or something..." Sol moaned, before realising exactly what he had just done. "I'm sorry, Star-sama. I meant no insult."

"None taken. Let's go, Sol." Sol simply stared at Light through slitted eyes. What had got into the boy? Normally, on insulting the Light he would be scolded and ridiculed, to make sure he would not do so again.

"Oh, and if you didn't want the jolt, you could always take a bird as your next host. I've heard that chickens are particularly suited to spirits of your personalities." Ah, so there it was.

They walked through the streets of Tokyo until they reached a playground, with the shouts and screams of children emanating from within. Light took a deep breath, before pushing open the gate and walking in.

"Hey scar-face!" One of the boys walked up to him. "Haven't seen you here before." he looked around. "Where's your Mum?"

"Don't have one. Orphan." Light stuck his hands in his pockets and did his best to look like a kid trying to pretend nothing is wrong. The boy's face fell.

"Oh, right. Well, the rest of the girls are over there playing pattycake, or sumfin." Light raised an eyebrow.

"I'm a boy, you know."

"Really? Wow! And how did you get umm..." he pointed at Light's face. Light touched the white streak.

"Would you believe me if I said a star fell out the sky and hit me on the head?"

"Uh, Ok? So If you're a boy, you don't have cooties or anyfin, right? You can come play hide-and-seek with us if you want."

"Alright. Who's seeking?"

"Boy over there. Oh, looks like the count has started! Good luck!" Then he ran off to hide. Light did the same, picking a tree and scaling it up above the canopy. The leaves hardly let light through here, so it would be hard for the seeker to find him. He arranged himself in the fork of the tree, and waited.

"Have we found everyone yet?"

"I think so!"

"No wait, there's still one person missing!"

"Who?"

"Umm, I'm not sure of his name..."

"Are you just making up stuff again, Josh?"

"No! Honest, he's real! He doesn't have a Mum and I thought he was a girl but he's really a boy and... oh! and he's got a really big scar down his face cause a star hit him on the head when it fell out the sky!"

"Has anyone else seen this boy?"

"No, miss."

"Very well. Josh, don't joke about things like this. It's time to head home, everyone. Goodbye, class!"

"Goodbye, miss!"

"And Josh, no more making up stories, or you won't be allowed to come here after school again. Is that understood?"

"Yes miss."

Light waited. He waited until the sun had vanished from the sky, and the stars were beginning to shine. He waited until clouds covered the stars, and it began to rain down on his small form.

Eventually Sol grew worried, and abandoned the body of the tabby cat. Taking possession of a mosquito, he flew up and was snatched by a bat. The bat then veered around to join Light in the tree.

"Star-sama, they are not going to come..." Light nodded, and hopped out of the tree.

"...I reasoned as such."

"Star-sama? You are not... angry, or betrayed?" Sol jumped back into the tabby cat. The terrified bat flew off as fast as its wings would carry it, into the rain. It flew up so high that it was eventually struck by lightning, but that has absolutely nothing to do with the story.

"No, I am not. I already knew that humans carry only their best interests at heart, whether it was protecting those they care about to soothe their consciences or just being selfish. This test of my hypothesis lends weight to the theory. However, this outing does not seem to have solved my problem."

"Umm, Star-sama? If I may suggest something?"

"Hmm?"

"I have heard that if somebody is sad, it may be best to cry a little, let out emotions?"

"That could work." Light found a bench to sit on.

"Sol, keep watch. I do not want to have to do this crying" he tested the word on his tongue like it was new to him (which it was) "where anyone can see me."

"As you wish, Star-sama."

And so Light gave up his iron control over his emotions, sitting there on the park bench in the rain. He cried, and cried, and cried, for hours on end. He cried for the loss of his family, which he could never have gone back to. He cried for Sol, the poor stray cat that had been shot near a CST fragment, and lost everything - his life, his memories, his freedom - and on trying to regain it, had only caused a huge mess. He cried for Kira, and how the other Tricker seemed so caught up trying to change the filth that was humanity - Light himself had given up on that long ago. And he cried for L, who was his first friend, and the only one that could understand him. He cried because L thought he was Kira, and because that was so close to the truth.

Sol remained by Light's side for the first hour, but the cold was beginning to get to him. He didn't have Light's miraculous ability to preserve the body at the moment of death, temperature and all. Eventually, he decided to go hunting. Light wouldn't notice his absence.

Now it happened - a complete coincidence - that a man named Raye Penber was also walking through the park. His plane to Japan had arrived late, and he had got lost on his way to report in. He saw Light, curled up on a bench, crying. Light rubbed his eyes and sat up.

"Sol? Is that you? What happened?" Raye was shocked at the massive scar the girl had. His heart was touched.

"Are you alright?" he asked in Japanese. "Where are your parents? Did they leave you here?" The girl looked at him thoughtfully.

"You're not Sol, then. Why are you here?" Raye was taken aback.

"Look, I don't think you should be out in the dark and rain like this. Does your Mommy know where you are?" Light sighed. Meaningless shows of care for strangers - it was such a human trait.

"I'm perfectly fine. Don't worry about me." Raye persisted.

"Do you need a place to stay for the night?" Light began to get a bit annoyed.

"Look, are you going to persist with this?"

"I am going to make sure you're cared for. How old are you, five?

"I'll take that as a yes then. Sol!" Raye looked around, but saw nobody there. Only a stray cat slinking towards the bench.

"Who is Sol? Is he your friend? How old is he?"

"It doesn't matter to you anymore. I'm just a dream."

"What do you-"

-Blank-

Raye Penber woke up sitting on a park bench in the rain, not quite remembering how he had got there. Had he fainted? He was pretty sure he'd had a dream about a little girl with a cat, and looking around, there was nobody in sight.

"Must have been a dream..." Then he remembered. The meeting! Oh Gosh, he was so late! He hurried the rest of the way, sparing no more thought to the girl with the scar on her face. Once Raye had moved on, a small tabby cat padded out from under the bench, and went to the foot of a tree. A dark shape leaped down, clothes sodden and hair dripping wet. Light's shoes squelched along the path as the two made the trek back home.

Raye eventually made it to his hotel, and changed out of his wet clothes. The laptop was sitting on the bed of the room he had hired, just like L had said. Unwilling to waste more time, he switched it on immediately. The loading screen was quickly replaced by an L in gothic lettering.

"So you decided to join us."

"I'm sorry - my plane was late and then I got lost and-"

"I know." In truth, L had been the cause of the delayed plane, but Raye would never know that.

"You're not angry at me?"

"No." Raye's preplanned apology speech disintegrated in his mind as he looked at the laptop.

"Uuh, Ok? So, what did you want me in Japan for, L?"

"I was originally planning to have you tail a couple of suspects for the Kira case, but your late arrival means that the other agents have taken that responsibility off your shoulders."

"So, am I going to be doing anything else?"  
"Yes, of course. Next week you will begin trailing one Sayu Yagami, daughter of the police chief who is leading the NPA investigation. For now, though, I would like you to work on a personal project of mine. I have recently been investigating a girl, who seems to have no records whatsoever in the system. Her name, or alias as it may be, is Tsuki. She is easy to identify by a long scar down the side of her face-" L stopped talking as Raye gasped. "What's wrong? Is it Kira?"

Raye shook his head, before reminding himself that that wouldn't do anything, L couldn't see his face.  
"No, it's just... I met Tsuki. Coming here. She was sitting on a park bench, crying. At least, I think it was her. Does Tsuki have blue hair?"

"Yes."

"Then it was probably her."

"Is Tsuki still there?"

"No, I don't think so... I can't really remember all that well, but I think she left. She said something about not wanting me to help her... it's all so fuzzy."

"Very well. I know for sure that Tsuki will be at the Sunshine Bakery tomorrow at four o'clock. Another informant, Ryuzaki, will attempt to plant a tracking device on her. Your job is to follow her discretely, and make a note of where she goes."

"But, surely the tracking device will-"

"If Tsuki is connected to the person I think she is, then a tracking device will not work. However it will be expected of me to try, and so if I do not then they will suspect a tail."

"Do you mean that Tsuki is connected to Kira? Surely not, she's six years old at most!"

"No, I was not talking about Kira. This person is my ally, however I know next to nothing about him. Tsuki is my only lead."

"...I understand. I will do as you ask, L."

L switched off the communications, and Raye's screen went dark. He smiled as he ate his strawberry cheesecake. Around him, the busy traffic of an internet cafe took no notice of the slightly odd looking man. There was very little chance that Star could track him from here. He had the advantage now.

'Let's see what your next move is, Star-kun.'

Back at his apartment, Light was having a fit of giggles. Really, this was just too easy! After Sol had taken control, they had gone through the man's pockets, looking for ID. What a pleasant surprise that they had actually found one of the FBI agents - what were the chances of that? And then the agent being assigned to follow Tsuki... Light had to hand it to L, he never would have found out their soon-to-be follower's identity if he hadn't had this stroke of luck. He had checked, and L was sending the message from an internet cafe on the far side of Tokyo.

Bugging Raye had been simple - Light had merely placed one of his specialised devices at the back of the man's neck. It would provide an internet link from which Light could jump to at any time, and listen/watch whatever the man was doing at the time - like talking with L. The best thing was, since it needed no camera, microphone or GPS, the tracker was smaller than a head louse, and skin-coloured. The chances of it being noticed were less than 3%.

"Oh L, I know exactly what you're planning. It's a shame, really. I actually thought this would be a challenge. Oh well, things may change later. If they continue this way then I might have to handicap myself so you can catch up."

Out of Boredom, Light checked again the Kira case files. There had been no new developments, just more criminal deaths. Funny, Light was beginning to doubt that it was CST that was giving Kira his powers. after all, the profile hardly fit. Why only kill those visible on camera at the time? It was not a stretch to believe that other supernatural forces existed out there, as well as CST.

'I wonder if Kira can kill me... I don't have a beating heart, so it's not likely.' Light yawned and watched the sun peek over the horizon. He checked the clock on the wall. Six thirty.

...Just under ten hours to go.


	6. Chapter 6

_"That was a joke._

_ha ha__. FAT CHANCE."_

The bell jingled as Light walked into the Sunshine Bakery at four o'clock exactly that afternoon. As expected, L was sitting right there. When he caught sight of Light, he waved. Light took that as an invitation to join him.  
"Heya Ryuzaki-san!"

"Hello Tsuki-chan." Light smiled and dug through his rucksack for the cushion he carried. He then hopped up on the table and sat down, so his eyes were level with L's. L suddenly blinked in realisation.

"So that's why Tsuki-chan does that?"

"Yep. You're the first person to have noticed. Here's your prize!" He pulled out a sweet from the rucksack and held it out to him. L accepted it... and looked at Light a bit weirdly. Light smiled back at L.

"Well, people always say not to take candy from strangers, right? So I figured that if you took the candy, it would mean that we weren't strangers, because everyone always says grown-ups are all wise and everything, so they would never take candy from strangers. So if you took it, I figure I could talk to you cause you wouldn't be a stranger!" The childish logic in that statement was evident, but the real meaning was clear to L.

'Do you trust me enough to eat something I offer you? Because if you don't, then I don't trust you enough to tell you anything.' While L hadn't expected such a confrontation so early on, he had to admit that it speeded things up.

L looked at the sweet. It was wrapped in pink paper, like the cheap ones you buy in bags. If he ate it, what would happen? He had not brought Watari here this time, so if the sweet contained a sedative, he could be captured and taken to Star. And if it was a poison...

This speculation would get him nowhere. With so many unknown variables, it was impossible to predict an outcome. So the choice was down to L. Eat it or leave it?

L pulled out a phone and sent Watari a text: "If I do not return, arrest Tsuki on suspicion of a link with Kira." Then he put the sweet in his mouth.

It tasted of strawberries - L's favourite - and he could not detect any poisons, although that did not guarantee it was free of them. He watched Tsuki's face, looking for a reaction. She was smiling, but it was a nice, slightly relieved smile instead of a triumphant one.

"Sorry to put you through that, but Star said he had to be able to trust you." L almost choked on his sweet. Sure, he had expected revealing of information, but not an outright confession! Swallowing the sweet, he asked

"So Tsuki-chan does admit she is connected to Star?" At this, Tsuki scowled.

"Not you aswell..." she muttered.

"Hmm?"

"I'm a boy, not a girl! Why does nobody realise that!" L blinked.

"Tsuki-chan is Tsuki-kun?"

"Yes. You would not believe how many people think I'm a girl, though. Even baa-chan at the counter seems to be convinced."

"Tsuki-kun does not sound happy at this."

"Of course not! Just because I look like a girl and have a girl's name doesn't mean I am one."

"So Tsuki-kun does not like his name. I can therefore safely assume Tsuki-kun is his real name, as he would simply not use an alias that he doesn't like." Light blinked, then fought the urge to band his head on the table.  
'Damn, he got me... Still, it's of no consequence.' Outwardly, he simply tilted his head and said

"Maybe. Or maybe it was given to me by Star who insists on me using it. He probably thinks it's funny that everybody thinks I'm a girl."

"Tsuki-kun is admitting a connection to Star."

"Yeah. He said it was fine because you'd suspect me anyway. Don't expect to learn much about Star from me though, because he's really secretive."

"Is it safe to assume that Tsuki iced the cheesecake?"

"Yeah, that was me. I snuck around the back."

"Does Star have a means to keep in constant contact with Tsuki-kun?"

"Yep. No, I'm not telling what it is!"

"That is fine. It answers a question that has been worrying me for a while." Just then, L's cheesecake arrived. Tsuki looked like he was having a hard time not bursting out laughing.

"The cake is a lie!" L looked at him.

"Are cookies a lie as well?" L asked anxiously. Tsuki furiously shook his head.

"Nope. Cookies always tell the truth. Except fortune cookies, maybe." As if to prove his point, he pulled out one from the paper bag in front of him - chocolate and vanilla swirl in the shape of a star - and began to munch on it happily. L started eating as well.

"So, did Star have Tsuki-kun reveal himself to me for any particular reason?"

"Nope. I just got bored, asked him, and he said yes. He's probably got some random reason, but I don't exactly know what it is yet." Interesting. So Star has a personal connection to Tsuki, enough at least to take his wishes into account on a serious matter such as identity.

"May I ask, what exactly is Tsuki-kun's relationship with Star?"

"You haven't guessed? I'm training to be his successor one day."

After that, they had talked some more, before Tsuki had got up to leave. Pausing at the door, he turned back and said

"Oh, right, I almost forgot! Star says you shouldn't eat so much sugar. You are what you eat!" With that, Tsuki left.

L was left alone to finish his cheesecake, and contemplate Tsuki's parting words. You are what you eat... well, Tsuki couldn't exactly say that to him himself, as he ate so many biscuits. If that was really true, then Tsuki would be made of cookies.

...that was a joke, right? Star had been joking about L's suspicions of him being an artificial intelligence, and L had only just realised it. He burst out laughing, gathering himself quite a few strange looks from the people either side of his table. Then he brought out his phone, and sent another text to Watari.

'Do not worry. I believe I am not in danger.' That should prevent him from from getting too worked up over L's previous message, however it would be best if L returned to the hotel without any delay, or Watari would begin to believe the message was a fake. Besides, L was eager to know the results of Raye Penber's investigation, which should have begun a few minutes ago when Tsuki walked out the door.

Light smiled happily as he walked down the pavement of a busy street. Checking his watch, which he had heavily modified earlier, he saw that Raye was twenty metres behind him. It was probably time to lose the tail.

'Sol'

'Is it time, Star-sama?'

'Yes. Go now.' Sol, who had been residing in Light's necklace, jumped away through the crowd, ready to cause mayhem.

Raye was keeping the target in sight. It was the little girl he had seen last night. Secretly, he worried for her - she had obviously got herself mixed up in something bad. But once he found out where she lived (was she homeless?), then L would take care of it. Raye was sure of that.

"Haha! Got your bag!" A teenager had suddenly swooped in and grabbed Raye's laptop. Without it, he had no link to L... this was bad! He took off in hot pursuit of the stranger.

The chase lasted all of ten metres. After that, the boy suddenly stopped and gave Raye back the bag. Then he got a confused look on his face.

"Uuh, what're you looking at me like that for, mister?" Raye was incredulous.

"You just stole my bag!" The boy looked at the bag, which was in Raye's hands by now.

"No I didn't! It's right there!" Raye really didn't have time for this. He should get back to trailing Tsuki... Tsuki!  
He spun around and took off running again, looking for any trace of the scarred girl. There was none; in the confusion, she had slipped away.

The boy stood there, looking at the man who had accused him of stealing his bag and then ran off.

"Weird guy..." he muttered, shaking his head. Then he went about his business as normal, completely unaware of what had really happened.

When Raye got back to his hotel, he dreaded having to tell L that he had failed. Switching on the laptop, he looked at the gothic L on the screen.

"L, I lost her!"

"Him."

"...what?"

"Tsuki-kun is male."

"How do you know?"

"My informant, Ryuzaki, was talking to her inside the bakery."

"Oh, so that's who that weird man was... Oh sorry, I meant... um..."

"No offense taken. So, you lost Tsuki-kun."

"Yes. I'm really sorry, L. It's just, I got distracted! My bag was stolen!"

"By whom?"

"A teenager, I think."

"It is strange, you you not think, that when you were following Tsuki-kun, happened to be the day you were unable to concentrate on him?"

"Are you saying that the incidents are related?"

"Yes. Tsuki-kun has friends in high places. It is not impossible for him to be being followed at all times for his safety."

"If I may ask, exactly who is this 'friend in high places'? You never told me why you wanted him followed."

"I have confirmation that Tsuki-kun is in regular contact with the freelance detective known as Star."

"Star? But I thought that was you..."

"A common misconception. Star and I are not the same person. However, we think alike. This leads many investigative agencies to the same conclusion you drew."

"So Star is Japanese?"

"Or currently residing in Japan, yes. But now Star will be aware of your surveillance on Tsuki-kun, and I do not know how he will react. It is possible, though unlikely, that he is listening to our conversation right now." Raye looked around, checking for bugs.

"Surely not. I haven't been near Tsuki except..."

"That time in the park? Yes, I was thinking about that too. It is very possible that Star had organised that meeting in order to plant a tracking device on you. The reason Tsuki was waiting there and crying - I believe Star told him to wait for you but the delay to your plane caused Tsuki-kun to be there much longer than expected."

"There was another thing. When Tsuki saw me, he mistook me for a person named 'Sol'."

"Interesting. Sol... like sun. It could easily be one of Star's other aliases. Very well. Trail Tsuki again tomorrow, and be wary of other attempts to distract. That is all." The L vanished from the screen. Raye kept staring at it, thinking.

Fifteen minutes later, an email arrived on the laptop. Opening it, he saw it was from one of the other FBI agents, whose anonymous email addresses he had been given before the assignment. The email read:

"Hello!  
I was thinking that maybe us Americans could get to know each other better? I don't even know anybody's name! Would it be alright if we each got a copy of each other's names and faces? Then we could organise a meeting. My name is Max Johnson, if you want to know it. I've enclosed a picture of me."

Raye's face brightened. That was a brilliant idea. He quickly typed a reply.

"Good idea! My name is Raye Penber. I've enclosed a picture as well. Could you get back to me with the names of the others?" Smiling, he sent the email. It was nice to know that he had friends from his home here. Japan was so lonely sometimes."

Light shook his head (or not, he didn't have one in this form) with exasperation. Really, how could the agent be so stupid! It was obviously Kira behind the message, that much was clear. If it hadn't been for him, Raye Penber would be dead soon. Of course, he might still be.

Light had modified the email, leaving no trace of the original. Where it had originally read 'Raye Penber', it now read 'Ray Penber'. His test was simple - if Kira needed a name and face to kill, could he be prevented from doing so by a spelling mistake? If all the agents but Raye died, then it would be confirmation enough. If not, then the change he had made was small enough not to be noticed as interference with the email.

His estimation of Kira's powers suggested that either he was a Tricker able to teleport to a person by knowledge of their name and face, and cause heart attacks with his tricks, or Kira was not related to CST at all. The second option was growing increasingly likely in Light's mind.


	7. Chapter 7

_"We do what we must, because we can._

_For the good of all of us,_

_Except the ones who are dead."_

After modifying the email, Light used the laptop to jump to the internet, and monitor Max Johnson's email address. As expected, somebody was currently using it. He followed the trail through the blue lines of cyberspace, and eventually came out at another laptop, riding a tube train.

Max Johnson - he recognised the face from the email sent to Raye - was sitting in the corner seat, with an envelope on his lap. The envelope had many slits in, and the man was copying names from the laptop onto the paper in the slits. Checking the emails, he saw that Max had asked for the names of all fifteen of the agents, with Raye as his last port of call. Even now, he was copying down the misspelt 'Ray Penber'. Interesting. It appeared to Light that Kira's method of killing was paper-based. Looking at the paper while in the Ghost World, Light was able to see that while it had no core, it was definitely out of the ordinary. It seemed to almost shimmer.

Light was disheartened. He had honestly believed there might be another Tricker out there, newborn and misguided, trying to make the world a better place. Light would have taken the poor soul under his wing, and molded them into the perfect ally. But instead, another supernatural event occurred. This Kira was probably another human, instead of (quite literally) a kindred spirit.

Still, he knew important information. Max Johnson was not Kira; Light could see that in the tension lines around his face - he did not want to do this, and Kira had probably threatened him with death if he did not cooperate. That begged the question of who was Kira. They would not be on the train, of course, but they would be nearby.

As light watched Max get up, leaving the envelope, and leave the train, he sighed. Heart attack on a station platform; how wasteful. Still, Light looked for a core of the dead on the corpse - he was usually able to talk to the recently deceased - and found none. Kira's kills left no soul behind. He would bet anything that thirteen other FBI agents just suffered the same fate.

What a total waste.

Now Light could go back to the train, and from there find Kira who would almost certainly pick the envelope up, but he didn't want to. He wouldn't be able to do anything without Sol here, and he could not declare the person as a suspect to L without evidence. Plus, it didn't really matter to him whether Kira was caught anymore, he just cared about beating L. And he really wanted to see L's reaction to the deaths of the FBI agents.

So Light jumped to the nearest mobile phone and entered Cyberspace. A four dimensional pattern of glowing lines spread out before him, and he easily navigated back to his body at the Cult. Apparently, according to Sol the phone lines were much the same experience, except much more limiting in terms of entrances and exits. Light was glad of Cyberspace, as it let him go anywhere that connected to the internet. It was one of the many perks of his computer-based Trick type.

L was sitting at the computer looking over the day's reports from the FBI agents when the first emergency message came in. He looked over it curiously. L had told the FBI agents to send the message only if they believed themselves to be in great danger. It was sent by one Julie Sparks. Quickly connecting to the laptop the message was sent from, he was greeted with a visual of the agent sprawled out on the floor, hand just touching the 'panic' button. She was obviously dead.

"Kira..." L muttered grimly.

Then the second emergency message flashed up on screen. This time from Max Johnson. The laptop was closed here, but he could imagine that the same thing had happened. Then a third message came. A fourth. A fifth.

L felt his blood run cold. He pressed the button to call Watari. a sleepy voice answered.

"What is it, L?"

"Kira is killing off the FBI agents." Instantly Watari was wide awake.

"I'll be right there." L rested his head in one hand.

"Damn you Kira... I hadn't expected you to act so quickly..." Overall, eleven messages were sent. L was not hopeful that the other agents had survived - it was just that they had no time to send a distress call before they died.

Watari burst into the room. Scanning the monitor, his face became more and more distressed.

"Oh no..." he whispered quietly.

Then, another message appeared on the computer. This one was not a distress call.

'File FBIAgents(txt) has been created. Would you like to open this file?'

L clicked Yes. The file opened up, bearing the words

"I take it you know what has happened?"

"Yes. Does Star-kun know how or why?"

"Short answer, yes." There was no idle chat this time. It was straight to business for both of them.

"Tell me."

"One of the agents, Max Johnson, was coerced by Kira to obtain the names and faces via the emails you provided. All the agents fell for the trap."

"How do you know this?" There was a pause, and then something downloaded onto L's computer. Two video files.

"The first is footage of Max entering the Yamanote line. The second is of him leaving it, more than an hour later. He has a heart attack on the platform." L watched the two. His sharp eyes picked out something almost immediately.

"Where is the Envelope he carried?"

"It was left on the train, presumably to be picked up by Kira. The Yamanote line takes an hour to complete its circuit, and runs in both directions. If Max simply wanted to travel, the most he would have spent there is half an hour." Star did not need to explain more. L reached the conclusion he had immediately. He turned to Watari.

"Get me a link to Max Johnson's laptop."

"As you wish, sir." L looked back at the screen, where a new message was waiting for him.

"I hope you know, L, that this is a time out in our game brought about by an exceptional circumstance. Once the sun has risen, I will again be your rival."

"Star-kun does not need to tell me."

"Then I leave you with this gift: Raye Penber is not dead. Check his laptop if you don't believe me." Five seconds later, File FBIAgents(txt) self-destructed. Watari handed him another laptop.

"I've set up a connection, L. This laptop should act like Max's." L clicked on the 'View Emails' in the bottom right hand corner. As expected, Max had not bothered to delete them. His eyes widened as he quickly scanned the emails.

'Names... and faces... Star was right!' He quickly looked at Raye's email. Right away, he spotted the spelling mistake in the name. His eyes widened (even more than usual) in a sudden realisation.

'If Raye is alive, then this is absolute confirmation that Kira needs a name to kill.' It was time to contact the FBI agent and check if Raye was dead or not. L trusted Star, but not enough to simply take his word on a matter as important as this. The only problem was, that Raye's laptop was switched off, and L would have to find another way to contact the man.

'Hmm...'

Raye was awoken with the sound of a ringtone. Blearily, he reached for his phone, which he always kept by his bed. There was only one person who knew his number.

"What is it, Naomi?"

"This is L." Raye gave a start.

"What... how did you-"

"That does not matter. I need you to confirm that you are Raye Penber. Recite the code I gave to you."

"Uh, Ok?  
O, not in cruelty, not in wrath,  
The Reaper came that day;  
'Twas an angel visited the green earth,  
And took the cube away."

"Thank you Raye. It is only fair for you to know; all the other FBI agents were killed by Kira tonight."

"...What?"

"That was an approximation of my reaction. I did not expect this to happen. However, we must make the best of the situation. Raye, I will be meeting with members of the NPA at an address I will not disclose over the phone later today. You are also welcome. I have taken the liberty of contacting your fiance, Naomi Misora - it was she who gave me this number - and enlisting her help."

"No! You can't!"

"I have. She requested it, actually. On hearing about your current situation, she wished to do all she could to aid you and the investigation." Raye knew it was useless to argue - this was L, and Naomi wouldn't budge from her decision either.

"Very well. Should I still follow Tsuki?"

"Yes. After you have noted where she goes, return to your apartment. I will send you a message with the location I and other NPA members will be at."

"As you wish, L." The phone clicked off. Raye tried to get back to sleep, but his mind was whirring. How could Kira... the email! Oh god, he'd been so stupid, giving out his identity to a stranger! But why then, was he not dead? Could it be possible that Kira was holding him hostage? It was a chilling thought. But then again, L had wished him to meet in person. He would not do that if he suspected Raye at all. So what was the reason?

Raye was not able to sleep that night.

Light, having listened to the conversation, was frowning. L was going to reveal his identity to the NPA. That was not at all like him. Of course, L would probably have a trick to whittle down the number of people that would meet him in person - most likely threatening the task force with being killed by Kira. But what bothered Light was that L was showing his face at all. He had never done that before. L was conceding a defeat to Kira by doing this, and it showed just how desperate he was.

'Oh L, the playing field has tilted too far in my favour.' It was no fun fighting a battle you were sure to win, and Light knew that. It was time to handicap himself, to even out the odds. Now how to go about that...

Light's mind flashed to L's idea of meeting with the task force, and he laughed his bell-like laugh. Imagine what L would think if he crashed the party! Oh, how he would struggle to find out the reason. And Light would be forced to be much more discreet with his behaviour, which would significantly handicap his position.

'You just wait, L. Try and figure this one out.'

"Hey Ryuzaki-san?"

"Yes Tsuki-kun?"

"Do you have people training to be your successor one day as well?"

"Why would Tsuki-kun want to know?"

"Oh, I just think it would be so cool! Maybe Star will let me meet them one day." L raised an eyebrow. How exactly would that be possible. Watari also had a confused look on his face.

"Excuse me, Tsuki-kun, but how could Star-san possibly arrange a meeting with them?"

"So you admit they exist, don't you?" Watari blinked. Had he really just fallen for... yes he had. The oldest trick in the book. It was amazing how much you let your guard down when talking to a five year old - Tsuki was obviously very aware of this.

"Anyway, I should probably get going. Stalker-san will be getting real bored waiting outside. See you real soon, Ryuzaki-san!" And Light hopped off the table, packed up his cushion and left, carrying his bag of cookies. Watari stared after him.

"Tsuki-kun is aware that he is being followed?"

"Mmm.." L pressed his thumb to his lips in his thinking pose. He was not at all surprised that Tsuki was aware of his tail - in fact, Star was sure to know all about Raye Penber by now - but rather, by the boy's parting words.

'see you real soon, Ryuzaki-san!'  
Tsuki had definitely meant something by it. Weighing up theories in his head, L decided what was most likely. Once he had determined the meaning, he allowed himself a slight smile, his first since the disastrous day had begun. It looked like Raye, Naomi and the five NPA members would not be the only ones meeting at his hotel.

...there was no need to tell Watari, though. From the looks of things, Tsuki had clearly indicated that he was letting L in on what was supposed to be a secret. It would do no good to spoil Star's fun, and L had to admit that the outcome would be quite entertaining for himself as well.


	8. Chapter 8

_"Look at me still talking when there's science to do!_

_When I look out there it makes me GLaD I'm not you."_

The second time Raye Penber trailed Tsuki, everything went smoothly. Raye did not take his eyes of his target, having learned his lesson the previous day. Strangely, there were no interruptions whatsoever. He was able to track the boy to a hotel near the centre of Tokyo.

After he watched Tsuki vanish through the doors, he waited ten minutes to make sure it was not a mechanism for Tsuki to shake off his tail. Then he walked off home, having memorised the address of the hotel. He would share it with L when the two met, which was scheduled for a couple of hours from now. Raye couldn't quite suppress a shiver. He, a lowly FBI agent, would meet the world's greatest detective in person! What would L be like? Raye had always thought of him as a disembodied voice - for all he knew, the person behind the speaker could be a girl.

He would finally have his questions answered, in just a couple of hours.

Just before Light entered the hotel, he left his body, jumping to the core of the pot plant in the window. Sol immediately took over - as planned - and began to walk through the lobby. Light used one of the cameras to enter the cyberspace, and from there he wiped his image from all the camera feeds in the building.

It was somewhat peaceful in that glowing network of blue lines. Light floated about as he watched Sol get into the elevator, and then set the destination for the correct floor. Once at its destination, he opened the doors and Sol stepped out into the corridor. The lock on L's room was not a problem - key card locks could be manipulated easily, but he was somewhat lucky that this hotel did not use old-fashioned key locks. Then, as Sol stepped across the threshold, Light jumped back into his body, pushing Sol out into the Temsik necklace.

Once inside, Light shut the door behind him, headed over to the sofa in the middle of the room, and sat on it, using his cushion from the bag he always carried. Now it was simply a matter of who noticed him first.

Matsuda was first to enter the room, but he did not notice the boy. Light sat stock still, his tiger-patterned clothing making him look like a cushion on the sofa. Matsuda got himself some coffee and left.

Yagami Soichiro was next. Light had to force himself not to react as his father looked right at him. He was fairly sure he was unrecognisable, but you could never be too careful. Soichiro's eyes widened, seeing Light staring unblinkingly at him.

"What are you doing here!" The shout echoed through the rooms, and pretty soon Matsuda was back.

"What's the matte- huh? Where did you come from?"

Light looked at Matsuda, assessing him. Humans were so easy to read.

"I hope I do not have to answer that question, seeing as you are an adult and you should know where babies come from." Light had no emotion whatsoever showing in his voice, and the trick worked. Matsuda became embarrassed and did not pursue the question further, as Light had known he would. Soichiro, however, did.

"I think you must have the wrong hotel room." he said in a kind voice. Light noted with approval that the man was not overly affected by the hideous scar down his face, but as a police officer he had probably seen worse. "do your Mummy and Daddy know where you are?"

"Obviously." Soichiro seemed taken aback, although Light knew he had not understood the dramatic irony in the statement.

"Look, this isn't your hotel room."

"Neither is it yours."

"-What?"

"This is the location for the Kira Task force as of today."

"How did you know that?"

"L will explain when he returns."

And so it was when L and Watari entered the room, they were greeted by the sight of five worried police officers and a young child, who had refused to budge from the sofa. Watari was confused.

"Tsuki-kun, what are you doing here?" Tsuki looked up at him.

"Waiting for you." He looked at L. L looked at him. As one, they both nodded. Then L spoke.

"Tsuki-kun will be staying with us for an extended duration of time."

"L, is that really such a good idea?" asked Watari, exasperated. "and when did you arrange this, anyway?" This time, it was Tsuki who said,

"Star asked L after the murders of the FBI agents. He's afraid that the work he's doing will put me into danger, and he wants to keep me as safe as possible." Watari instantly agreed to the idea. Inwardly Light smirked. Humans were so easy to manipulate, it was proven time after time! Simply find what makes them tick, and appeal to that. With Watari, the man had a soft spot for kids, particularly intelligent ones, and would do a lot to keep them away from danger.

"I suppose you can stay then."

"Good." Tsuki hopped off the sofa.

"We should probably get back to work, seeing as these people" he made a gesture to the task force "stopped theirs when they noticed me." He walked out into the room with the laptops set up. L and Watari followed, leaving behind a very confused five police officers.

"Who is that kid?" whispered Matsuda to Mogi.

"I'm not sure, but she obviously knows L."

When Raye Penber received the address of where L was, with his fiance sitting in the hotel room right beside him, he was a little bit startled.

"But that's the place where-"

"I know. Star has outwitted me in this. There is no longer any use in following Tsuki, as he will simply return to here."

Raye and Naomi arrived at the hotel room half an hour later. The first person they saw was Tsuki, sitting half-lotus on his cushion in front of a laptop. He waved when he saw them.

"Heya Stalker-san!" Naomi looked at Raye accusingly.

"Look, I didn't ask Tsuki to call me that, he just started doing it now!"

"Stalker-san's right, right?" And then Tsuki went back to whatever he was doing. L walked into the room.

"Hello Raye."

"Are you one of the people working here? I thought you were an informant!" Raye asked in confusion. Ryuzaki looked very... disheveled for a police officer. He wasn't even wearing shoes...

"I am L." Instantly Raye was embarrassed for thinking such thoughts. Down on the cushion, Tsuki smiled and whispered something about manipulation by prejudice. It made no sense to Raye.

Naomi decided to interrupt the slightly awkward silence that was beginning to develop.

"We are honoured to meet you, L. Are you using a different alias here?"

"Call me Ryuzaki." The name obviously meant something to Naomi, but she did not say why. Light noted that away in his memory.

A little later, Light began to get bored again. While the - admittedly quite comical - reactions of the task force had been interesting, only L could provide properly stimulating conversation. So Light looked again at the laptop, and jumped to it, leaving Sol in charge.

Cyberspace looks different depending on what you use to enter it, and this laptop obviously had very high security clearance. There were very few blocks and many glowing lines of data extending in all directions. One notable one was a connection to a wifi hotspot in the south of England, heavily guarded from outside access but clear as day from this laptop. Following it, he checked briefly that the place on the end was what he suspected - noting in particular, the type of exit and who was holding it - then went back to his body. Ten minutes or so had passed, but nobody had noticed yet that Sol was only staring at the screen, mimicking Light's way of deep thought. Really, he would have to teach the cat to properly read, else he could be given away. Oh well, it was better than turning into a corpse every time he wanted to do anything.

'Sol, I need you to run an errand for me.' briefly, he described what he needed. Then he got up from the cushion, ripped a sheet of paper off one of the notepads in the room, and wrote on it:

174520  
cosmos black  
19:32

Then he folded it up into a paper glider, to the slightly curious looks of one Mogi, and threw it out the window. When asked what he was doing, he shrugged and replied with

"I was bored, so I asked Santa for a games console." Mogi decided not to reply, figuring that it was useless to even try to understand him.

'Good, you're beginning to realise.'

The paper glider sailed down into the street below. One curious passer-by, a young man in his twenties or so, happened to be looking up. He caught the glider and examined it. Then his face went curiously blank of all expression.

The man turned around and walked away, in the opposite direction to that he had been going in. Ten minutes later, he reached a tiny block of flats. He knocked on the door.

Mikami Teru answered.

"Hello? Can I help you?"

"one-seven-four, five-two-zero." Mikami's eyes went wide.

"I am honoured to meet you, messenger. Please, do come in." So the man went up to the top floor, into a room littered with stuffed toys. From underneath one, he pulled out a stash of money. Then he left.

The man walked into a game shop. Grabbing a Cosmos Black Nintendo 3DS from the shelf, he went to the counter and bought it, using the money he had gotten at the apartment. Then he walked out, into a shop that sold bird food, and bought six packets.

Sitting on a bench outside, the man tucked the 3DS under the bench, before spreading the bird food on the floor around. Then he seemed to change.

"Wait, what?" he looked around. "I'm pretty sure I was walking just then..." then he looked at his watch. "Oh damn, I'm gonna be late!" he ran off.

Under the bench he had been sitting on, small birds began to gather, attracted by the food spread around. One suddenly hopped away and took off, flying high into the air. It was buffeted by the wind, but flew on with single-minded determination towards its target: a hawk, hovering in the sky above. The hawk, on seeing this tasty morsel flying towards it, quickly fell into a steep dive, hitting the little bird with its talons.

Then the hawk carefully dropped the bird, which flew off as fast as its wings would carry it. Next, the hawk glided to the ground, landing on a bench. All the other small birds took off in a panic. The hawk hopped down to the ground, and with its talons grasped hold of the box underneath the bench. It then took off, flying upwards over the city. A few people stopped what they were doing, to marvel at the sight - a hawk, carrying a Nintendo 3DS box? How unlikely!

Eventually, the hawk reached the top of a building. Here, it laid down the box and rested its aching wings. Looking first down at the rows of balconies on the side of the building, then at the clock on the building opposite, which read 7:28 p.m., Sol allowed himself a moment of happiness. He had made it in time.

At seven-thirty, Light got up from his cushion again. Mogi, who had been assigned to follow him, asked what he was doing now.

"Santa's going to get me a games console. I don't want to miss it!"

"You do know that Santa doesn't actually... er..." Mogi suddenly felt very guilty. It was easy to forget that Tsuki was a five-year old sometimes - Mogi had probably just ruined the boy's hopes.

"What do you mean, Santa doesn't exist! Of course he does!"

"Look, kid. I'm sure you're unhappy, but-"

"Santa exists, you just don't believe in him, so he won't show himself to you!"

"He doesn't, ok?"

"Yes he does. I'll prove it!" and Light ran out of the room onto the balcony. He checked the clock on the building opposite - twenty seconds left. Time to start the last phase of his plan. He spun around to face Mogi.

"You're just jealous of me because I still believe. Santa sends me presents!" He pointed at Mogi, and smiled. "But one day, if you truly believe, then maybe you'll be able to do this." He held out his palm, face up towards the heavens.

One cosmos black Nintendo 3DS fell from the sky, landing in Light's outstretched hand.

Mogi looked at it. Light looked at Mogi. Mogi looked back at Light.

"What the hell?" Mogi whipped around, staring at the sky. There was nothing in sight.

"How is that possible!" Light smiled at him innocently, as only a five year old could. Clutching the 3DS in both hands, he walked back inside.

"Everything's possible if you really believe, Mogi-san." Then he laughed. Mind Games. You had to love 'em.


	9. Chapter 9

_"I've experiments to run_

_There is research to be done_

_On the people who are_

_Still Alive."_

Light hadn't actually requested Sol to get the 3DS just so he could confuse Mogi. There was actually a perfectly logical explanation for his antics: he needed a means of communication.

Light could not use L's laptop because, while he could change the settings, L would notice immediately. He needed to do this in secret.

Taking the 3DS out from its packaging, he set up basic functions, and then hacked the software. It was pitifully easy to do, and he honestly wondered why they even bothered with anti-piracy this flimsy at all. But then again, humans were easily deterred by even the smallest measures against them.

Leaving his body, he began to do the real work. As of now, the console was a clean state; Light quickly changed that, installing on it software that read voice commands, recognised the face of who was speaking them, and a firewall he had made himself that would prevent anyone from hacking in. Once he was certain it was secure, only then did he begin to set up a link to Wammy's House. After all, he couldn't very well let L know that he was talking to his successors, as Light was pretty sure that L would freak out - knowing about Wammy's house meant Star could know L's true name, and Star was a likely Kira suspect. Light was eighty-seven percent sure that L's refusal to keep in contact with his potential successors over the years stemmed from the fact that he wanted them unknown to Star.  
It was a real pity that it hadn't worked in the slightest.

Matt was on the eighty-ninth level of his game when it suddenly paused. Considering the fact that his hands had been nowhere near the pause button, he was a bit confused.

'New software has been added to the Home Menu' and then the screen on the 3DS showed a new icon, labeled only with an asterisk. By now Matt was starting to worry. This was not possible. He had modified the system to refuse system updates, just so they would not interrupt his game. The only possible explanation was that someone had hacked into his 3DS and modified it again. But that too was impossible, because he had set up protection against it, in case Mello ever decided to take up software hacking. His protection was the best. Nobody could break the encryptions he had set up.

But someone obviously had.

Could it be L? His eyes flicked again to the asterisk. Surely if it was L, then he would advertise his presence as such, right? Unless L felt a dire need for secrecy, he could see no reason why the great detective would hide behind an asterisk.

An asterisk.

A *.

A Star.

Star.

Matt gasped and clicked immediately on the icon. He now knew exactly who had sent this to him, and how they had managed. Star was the master hacker, the freelance detective who darted in and out of the police mainframes, leaving hints on unsolvable cases. He was not like L, because he had no face through which to openly talk to Interpol or any other such agency. If he wanted police information, he simply took it without asking, or leaving any trace of his deed.

He was also Matt's number one hero, and the person who had inspired him to become a hacker. L was cool and all, but Star was much better. If he could learn the easy navigation through systems that the man seemed to possess, then he would never need become L's successor - he could work on his own, as a freelance detective just like Star. He would have no obligations to anything or anyone. Yes, it sounded like the best lifestyle ever.

And now Star was contacting him?

The ion loaded quickly, and displayed a blank white screen - similar to one of Star's infamous text files. There were two lines of text along the top.

Matt has joined the chat.

Tsuki has joined the chat.

Matt looked for a means to input text, but found none. None of the buttons worked, and neither did the touchscreen.

"Damn. How does this thing work!" he watched wide-eyed as a line of text appeared.

Matt says: Damn, how does this thing work!

Tsuki says: I think you just found out.

Matt says: You can hear me?

Tsuki says: Nope. The voice recognition system Star installed in your console can hear you.

Matt says: You're not Star?

Tsuki says: No. I'm training to be his successor. Kind of like you and L.

Matt says: Then why are you talking to me?

Tsuki says: I got bored, and Star was ignoring me. So I pestered him into doing this so I could talk to someone.

Matt says: Cool.

Tsuki says: I know. So talk to me, I'm bored!

Matt rolls his eyes.

Matt says: How did it know I was doing that?

Tsuki says: There is a camera right there on the device, you know.

Matt pulls a face.

Tsuki says: Yes, it is very entertaining to see what it can pick up, I know.

Matt sticks out his tongue.

Matt says: I bet it can't track me if I do this.

Matt turns the device around.

Matt waves at the camera.

Matt says: Is it still picking me up?

Tsuki says: There are two cameras on the other side of the 3DS. Of course it can still see you.

Matt flips the device back over.

Matt says: Aww, I didn't think of that!

Mello has joined the chatroom.

Mello says: Hey Matt, you need to stop playing on games so often.

Mello walks closer to the 3DS.

Mello says: That's not a game. Matt, are you trying to hack the system again? You know what the punishment for that is... is that thing picking up my voice?

Matt says: Yeah.

Mello says: Oh, it's one of your test programs again.

Tsuki says: Nope.

Mello looks around for Tsuki.

Mello says: Who's that? Where is she?

Tsuki starts laughing.

Tsuki says: I'm talking over the internet - I'm not actually in the room, Mello!

Mello says a bad word.

Mello says: What, it doesn't let you swear? That's so-

Mello says a bad word

Mello says: -annoying.

Matt starts laughing.

Mello looks annoyed.

mello says: I didn't know there was a Tsuki at Wammy's.

mello says: Wait, why has my name lost its capital letter?

Tsuki says: Because I have just lost some respect for you.

Matt tries and fails to control his laughter.

Matt says: So, how old are you, Tsuki?

Tsuki says: Somewhere between five and seventeen. Take your pick.

mello looks confused.

mello says: But if Tsuki's already at Wammy's, why do you need to know her age?

Tsuki bangs his head on a table, and would like to stress that HE IS A BOY!

mello-baka says: Well, Tsuki sounds like a girl's name to me!

mello-baka says: And what's up with the 'baka'?

Tsuki-sama says: Honorifics are given as a term of respect in Japanese, my home language.

Matt-kun sniggers.

mello-baka says: What does -baka mean?

Matt-kun says: It means you are an idiot, mello-baka. Come on, even I know Japanese honorifics systems!

mello-baka says: You only know because you play hacked ROMs of japanese games before they're released here.

Roger has entered the room.

Matt-kun and mello-baka look up.

mello-baka says: Hey Roger, Matt's talking to somebody from the outside!

Roger says: Matt, is this true?

Matt-kun says: Look, I can explain-

Roger says: Give the games console here, Matt. If this is true, then you have broken a very strict rule. That means no games for a month!

Matt-kun closes the 3DS.

Tsuki starts laughing.

Roger grabs the 3DS.

File WammysChat(txt) has been deleted.

When Roger opened up the 3DS, all he saw was Matt's paused game from earlier. He rounded on Mello.

"You're just trying to get Matt in trouble again, weren't you? No chocolate for a week!" he gave the 3DS back to Matt, amidst Mello's protests.

"But Roger, he really was!"

"Careful, Mello, or it'll be a month." Mello had the sense to shut up. Matt looked back down at the 3DS. Unpausing the game, he noticed as one of the characters approached his avatar to talk to him.

'Hey, that was fun! We should meet up again sometime!' Matt smiled. Nobody unfamiliar with the game would ever see it as a hidden message, but Matt knew.

Tsuki would be talking to him again soon.

In the Kira Task force HQ, Tsuki was still laughing as Ukita entered to check up on him.

"What're you doing?" He asked. Tsuki looked at him, innocently smiling.

"I was playing a game! It's really fun, too!" Yes, it was. These days, everything was simply a game to Light. Ukita peered over to look at the screen. It showed some yellow boxes with eyes. He shook his head. Kids these days.

A few days passed without incident. At times, Tsuki would vanish without trace, only to reappear an hour or so later, smiling his completely innocent smile, the one that had the rest of the Task Force utter putty under his gaze. L was not fooled; he knew that inside the body of the young child, there was a brilliant mind that surpassed the intelligence of everyone there, except him. And even then, L wasn't so sure that Tsuki wasn't simply hiding his true self, in order to relieve suspicion.

The other members of the Task Force did not like Tsuki's disappearances, but for an entirely different reason than L. L hated the thought that Star was meeting with Tsuki and he could do nothing to prevent it; everyone else just didn't think it right that a five-year old should go wandering alone.

Soichiro had brought this up with L one day.

"Look, I think we should send Raye to keep an eye on him when he's out."

"If Yagami-san has any idea how to do this, I would be glad to hear his suggestion." Soichiro stared at L. L looked back curiously. "Does Yagami-san have something to say?"

"What do you mean? Surely we can just watch the cameras to see when Tsuki leaves, and assign Raye to follow him!" L sighed.

"It is impossible to do that. Look." He put his finger on the laptop screen, which was showing cctv footage of the lounge room. Tsuki was not there. "I am unsure how, but Star seems to have wiped Tsuki-kun's image from all cctv cameras in this building, and others as well. I would not be surprised if Star has made it impossible for Tsuki-kun to be caught on camera, at all."

Soichiro looked shocked.

"How is it possible to even do that?"

"It may not be true, but considering Star's abilities and his overprotectiveness of Tsuki, I have seventy-three percent certainty that it is."

"But... to have our faces wiped... That would be such a great help in the Kira investigation! Can't you get Star to do that for us, as well?"

"Unfortunately, no. Star is not under any obligation or responsibility to keep you alive. In fact, considering how the team seems to be bothering and boring Tsuki, he would not care the slightest if you died. Watari, more cake."

"Here you are, Ryuzaki." L munched on the cake, completely ignoring Soichiro.

"B-but surely, Star would want to save our lives?"

"I have seen no evidence to that effect. Although maybe I should ask Star to wipe my image, as he seems to think of me as a friend. Hmm..." And L continued eating the cake.

"...alright. I can accept that maybe Star does think like that. But surely we can keep somebody watching Tsuki at all times! That would solve the problem?" It was more like a question than a statement. Soichiro knew that L would have considered this already, and found flaws.

"The director of the FBI has already sent a request to recall Raye Penber, which will have to be honoured in the next couple of days. Naomi Misora will be leaving with him. Mogi has refused to go near the boy ever since he first arrived. Something about Santa, I believe. Neither will Matsuda; he seems to fall asleep whenever I leave him and Tsuki-kun together. The same with Ukita. I have deduced that Tsuki-kun carries a method on him which allows him to knock people out, though I am unable to ascertain what it is."

"...you're wrong, L! A five year old would never do that!"

"Tsuki-kun is no ordinary five year old."

"L, I think you're being too unreasonable."

"Then Yagami-san will simply have to watch Tsuki-kun this afternoon."

"Fine. I will!" And he stalked out of the room, into the lounge. Tsuki was on his cushion, looking up at him innocently.

"Hello Yagami-san. Did Ryuzaki-san assign you to watch me?" He tilted his head at Soichiro, who felt his heart lift a little. Innocence like that was what he had become a detective to protect.

"Yes Tsuki-kun. Do you need anything?"

"Do you have any cookies?" Soichiro nodded and went to the kitchen to get some. Coming back with a plate of biscuits and a glass of milk, he looked around for the boy.

"Tsuki?"

Tsuki had vanished. Soichiro put down the cookies and milk and went back to L.

"Ryuzaki, Tsuki's gone!"

"Hmm... it appears that Tsuki did not need to use his knockout device this time. He was able to manipulate Yagami-san into leaving just by asking nicely."

"Tsuki wouldn't take advantage like that!"

"Believe what you want, Tsuki is still gone. He will be back in half an hour, with a bag of cookies - the ones at headquarters do not seem to be to his taste."

"...I'm not even going to ask how you know that, L."


	10. Chapter 10

_"So I'm GLaD I got burned_

_think of all the things we learned_

_for the people who are_

_Still Alive."_

"...eye trade?"

"Yes, at the cost of half your remaining life, you can see the names and lifespans of everyone you see."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"You never asked."

"Awww, Rem! Next time something like this comes up, tell me! Now what to do... If I have Shingami eyes, then surely I'll have an advantage! ...I'll do it, Rem. How do I make the trade?"

"By agreeing to it, the deal has already been made."

"Yay! Now L, how to make you reveal your face..."

"...these tapes were sent to Sakura TV by Kira himself!" Tsuki looked up in interest at the screen, analysing the credibility of the statement. The frightened reporter continued on.

"In the first tape, Kira predicted the deaths of two criminals, which happened exactly as stated. He has instructed us to air the second tape at exactly 5:59 p.m. If we do not, he will kill all the staff of Sakura TV. So we are being held hostage, by Kira himself!"

'Yes, it is easy to deduce that. Play the tape, please.' were the shared thoughts of Light and L, although the rest of the task force were still staring in blank shock at the screen, which suddenly went an off-white colour with the word 'KIRA' emblazoned in fancy lettering.

"If my instructions have been followed exactly, then it should be 5:59:40, 41, 42. Turn over to channel eight, where the newscaster will die of a heart attack at exactly 6:00." L flipped the channel, and asked Watari for another screen. Channel eight showed a man, collapsed in front of the camera. L switched back to Sakura TV.

"...hopefully, this is proof of my powers. However, some of you may require another demonstration. The sports commentator on channel five will also die, at 6:01 exactly." This time, they were able to watch the man collapse, on live TV. Light mentally congratulated Kira on finding such an efficient method to prove his identity.

"Now that everyone knows I am Kira, I want to make my demands known. I do not wish to be against the police, rather I would like to cooperate with them. So I ask them this: Are you willing to work with me, and build a crime-free world together? Or will you insist on your futile efforts to stop me? I expect the answer to be announced on the six o'clock news, exactly four days from now. I have prepared one tape if the answer is Yes, and one if the answer is No. Choose wisely." Then the tape ended.

The investigation team were still staring at the screen, which now showed one of the staff at Sakura TV. L was holding his thumb to his lips, brain whirring as he processed the information.

"We need to get those tapes, as soon as possible." Ukita jumped up.

"I'll go get them right away!" He dashed out the door, to the protests of Soichiro.

"But surely, that's dangerous!"

"Very. I do not expect Ukita to return alive, but we would be unable to stop him. Kira is most likely watching the entrance to Sakura TV, expecting something like this. If Ukita is recognised, he will die." L did not change facial expressions as he said this, which seemed to annoy Soichiro.

"How can you be so cruel, Ryuzaki? You just sent one of the team to his death!"

"I did not send him, he went on his own. Watari, can we get a camera on the front of Sakura TV?"

"No, Ryuzaki. They have no surveillance cameras that I'm aware of."

"Hmm." L began to flip through the channels, looking at the news being broadcast. Channel eight had had a broadcaster murdered, and as expected they were reporting the story - including having sent someone with a camera to Sakura TV's entrance.

"As you can see, all is eerily quiet at Sakura TV. There is no sign of the devastation that has occurred within." Suddenly, someone appeared, running in front of the camera.

"Hey, it's Ukita!" yelled Matsuda. The rest of the team told him to shut up, and concentrated on the screen. Ukita was banging on the doors and yelling at the security guard inside, who shook his head, frustrated.

"..." and the scratching of pen on paper were the only sounds as the name Ukita Hirokazu was written in pen inside a black notebook.

"Uurk!" Ukita clutched his chest, as he fell to the floor. The cameraman started to back off from the scene.

"We're going to leave the camera here, but I - I mean, we - will be staying a safe distance away. Kira is out there somewhere, and killing anyone in his way. I want to take this moment to say to the world, Kira is evil! He must be stoppe- Aagh!" and a body slumped down in front of the camera, leaving it filming.

Silence hung over Sakura TV.

"What do we do now?" Whispered Matsuda to Mogi. L answered.

"We need to get the area cordoned off by police. My suspicions have been confirmed; Kira can now kill with only a face. Therefore, we need to get the police wearing helmets so their faces cannot be seen."

"uh, guys."

"Yagami-san, phone up the chief of police."

"Guys!"

"Aizawa, see if you can contact Sakura TV."

"GUYS!"

"What is it, Mogi?"

"Where's Tsuki?" It was true, Tsuki was gone. Matsuda quickly checked all the rooms, but there was no sign of the boy.

"There is a sixty-seven percent chance he has gone to either contact Star about the situation or become directly involved." Ryuzaki did not seem worried, but he was the exception rather than the rule.

"Why does he always disappear on us like this!"

Light laughed as he raced towards Sakura TV. It had been easy to get a car to stop for him, and from there Sol worked his magic and Light had commandeered the vehicle. About a hundred metres away from the television station, he had jumped out and left a confused and disorientated woman sitting in the drivers seat.

Running full pelt towards Sakura TV, he saw the camera set up in front of it and waved. Then he went to the glass doors and leaned down to check the body for a pulse. As expected, there was none. Shame really, but it did confirm Light's suspicions about Kira having increased in power - or maybe he was like that all along, and had been trying to hide it.

The task force stared in horror at Tsuki as he waved at them through the camera.

"How did he get there so fast?"

"That doesn't matter now. Tsuki's face is being broadcasted on camera. I know for certain that Star would never allow that unless he was certain that Kira would be unable or unwilling to kill Tsuki."

"What do you mean, unwilling to kill Tsuki!"

"Star is making a dangerous gamble. If Kira decides to put aside his morals and kill Tsuki, then he will have lost his successor. If however, Kira does not, then we have gained a significant advantage. It is also possible that Kira's method does not work on people under a certain age."

"Aww, I can't kill a little girl!" Rem watched, anxious, as the person in front of her wrestled with the moral dilemma. Eventually, however, they came to a conclusion.

"If I don't kill this girl, then countless other innocents will die. It's for the greater good." And that was it - the kanji, Tsuki Yagami, were written in a black notebook.

Suddenly, Light felt a throb in his chest, and a spike of - something, hot, highly unpleasant, he realised with a start that it must be pain - shot over his chest. He gave a cry and fell to the ground, suddenly ceasing to breathe.

"No..." The task force stared in horror at the fallen body of Tsuki. Soichiro began to cry.

"But, why? Tsuki was five... How could you, Kira!" His eyes filled with utter rage. Mogi laid a hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him.

"Look, I know that Tsuki was close to you, but still..."

"It's not just that. I had a son, Light. He was five too, when he died. He was kidnapped, but never found. Tsuki... became that son for me, even if it was for just a few days." Mogi suddenly understood. He switched off the tv.

"Look, I know this is hard for you. But you need to pull through, ok? Catch Kira for Tsuki, for Light." Soichiro nodded, eyes hardening. He switched the television back on.

"What the hell?" Tsuki was gone... again.

Having been temporarily forced out of his body by Kira's power, Light took the moment to possess the camera filming this place and wipe his image from the picture. Then he repossessed his body - looks like he was immune to Kira's power - and stood up. The security guard inside looked at him, terrified.

"Sol." and then the security guard let him in, a blank expression on his face. He shut the door behind him, and went to find those tapes.

When the police finally surrounded the building, Soichiro was stunned to see that Tsuki really had disappeared. His rising hopes were quashed by L, who was speaking into his earpiece.

"It makes sense that Star would send someone to retrieve Tsuki-kun's corpse, as he could hold a valuable clue to Star's identity."

"How can you be so callous about it!" Soichiro hissed back furiously.

"I am not callous. Tsuki's death has in fact affected me very greatly; more than it should have. I just refrain from showing it while there is important work to do."

They burst in, helmets over their faces, to find one security guard holding a bag with the tapes in.

"Here. I don't agree with what they're doing up there, so I snuck in and took the original tapes. They still have copies, though, so you might want to get those." He handed the bag over to the nearest officer, then got a slightly confused look on his face.

"Uh, yes? Did you want me for something?" Soichiro gestured for them to ignore the guard and advance further into the building.

The police performed a thorough search, finding all the tape copies. Eventually, they came to the roof.

"Sir, there are footprints. Someone's been up here."

"I know." The footprints did not lead down again, so whoever it was must still be on the roof. He ordered a search.

Nobody was found.

Back at the Cult of Stars, Light was watching the aftermath of the events on the Channel eight news. Speculation was rife as to the identity of the mysterious girl who had walked in front of Sakura TV, collapsed, and then disappeared. Some thought she was Kira. Some thought that she was one of the victims, haunting from beyond the dead. The name Tsuki was never mentioned.

'Looks like the Task Force decided to shut up about my identity. That simplifies things.'

Ah, it was nice to be able to run things on your own schedule, without being watched over by an annoying crowd of humans who might have meant well, but had seriously restricted his freedoms. Light wondered why he hadn't faked his death before that - the last few days had been so boring, with Light forced to conform to the normal expectations of a five year old. But the outcome was definitely one of the best he could hope for. This way, all suspicion was off Light of being Kira, and L no longer would have any reason to trail Tsuki - he wouldn't even know he was alive!

Obviously, he could no longer visit the sunshine bakery for cookies, but that was no problem - he could have one of the Cult fetch them for him.  
And now... without the petty distractions of the task force... he could finally get to work on the real investigation.


	11. Chapter 11

_"And the science gets done_

_and you make a neat gun_

_for the people who are_

_Still Alive."_

At Interpol, an argument was raging.

"You can't! L is our only hope on this case!"

"Kira has threatened to kill the U.S. president, and other major world leaders, if we don't give him L! We have no other choice!"

"What's to stop Kira from killing them anyway?"

"What else would you suggest we do - nothing?"

Yes, the message on tapes three and four had been revealed, and nobody liked what it was - a prediction of two people to die at the exact time the tape was meant to be shown, and a demand for L's face to be shown on TV. There was little difference in content between the 'Yes' message and the 'No' message, apart from some things worded slightly differently. It had caused an uproar, especially the part where Kira stated that he was holding the american president as hostage so his demands would be met. Naturally, the delegation from America was arguing for Kira's demands to be met.

The delegation from Japan, consisting of Matsuda, Aizawa and Soichiro, were the main ones in opposition. It was quite fun really, to see these two groups of humans debating so furiously about such a small matter as one life.

In fact, had Light been in a body at the moment, he would have been laughing his head off. Really, it was hilarious how easily Kira had created dissent among the people that had sworn to catch him. In particular, America was making a stupid mistake by wasting their time arguing. It was obvious that Kira did not want to kill the US president, or he would have done it already. It was also obvious that Kira very much wanted to kill L. Therefore, if their lives were considered worth the same amount (and Light considered L to be worth far more than any politician, who the humans could replace quickly enough) it was the rational decision to refuse Kira's request.

It was quickly becoming apparent that nobody at the interpol meeting was capable of rational judgement. They simply squawked about like parrots and no work was done.

"We need to do something! We can't just let Kira go unopposed!"

"Guys, how are you even going to persuade L to show his face on TV?" Thank you Matsuda, for stating the obvious fact that everyone else here seems to have totally missed.

Murmurs broke out across the ICPO. Apparently, nobody else thought of that. Light was overcome with another fit of giggles, and actually had to disconnect from the system lest he interfere with the power supply to the building by accident. It was even more hilarious when he wasn't watching from the detached world of Cyberspace.

"That's easy. We simply order L to reveal himself. He can't go against us on this." Oh, yes he can.

"But we haven't even told L about this! How are we supposed to work out a plan if L isn't even present!" yelled Soichiro.

It was true, L had been forbidden from being present at this meeting, for fear that he might disrupt the proceedings out of concern for his own life. Interpol seemed to have forgotten that L was a rational human being, perfectly able to make these judgements (unlike the American delegation, who really were not helping the proceedings). Watari had been forbidden from entering, and the system had been protected with maximum security against any infiltration attempts by L (the program had been designed and created by an anonymous programmer going by the alias M2, and Light was quite sure that L was currently listening by means of a back-door method specifically made for him by Matt).

"Surely we can just hide the president's identity?"

"You idiot! Kira already knows his name and face!"

Light began to tune out the conversation, which was getting boring. Instead, he jumped back into Cyberspace and went looking for L.  
It was fairly easy for him to track the link back to L's laptop, and L seemed to be staring at the screen with an almost... resigned look on his face? Was he actually considering revealing himself if Interpol asked him to?

'File Interpol(txt) has been created.'

L opened the file, still staring at the screen.

"Is there any particular reason you wanted to talk to me now, Star-kun?"

"Oh, I'm watching the meeting too. You look unhappy. Is there something you know that I don't?"

"Maybe."

They continued watching, together. Gradually, the countries were reaching a decision. After all, who knows what other people Kira might kill if they don't give him what he wants? The protests from Japan were drowned out by a multitude of other countries, and Light sat and watched, knowing what was going to happen.

"So it has been decided. L, are you going along with this?"

"Naturally, I would find it in my best interest to refuse. However, I am afraid this is not an option."

"What is it, L?"

"Aizawa possesses a copy of my face." Indeed, that looked to be the case. Aizawa had stood up and announced exactly that, garnering stocked and betrayed looks from Soichiro and Matsuda. There had been a storm of protests and accusations, which led to Aizawa being forced to display this face.

"I have it on my phone. Give me a minute."

Meanwhile, Light was facing a dilemma. Should he, or should he not? ... he probably should. It wouldn't do to have L die now, and the reactions at Interpol would be fun to watch. He typed out a reply to L.

"Don't think you're getting off the hook that easily. I invested a lot into this case, and I'm not about to set it back by letting you get killed."

"How does Star-kun presume to avert my death?"

"Watch and learn."

After Aizawa had synced his phone with the big screen up front, he brought up the image. There were shocked whispers around the ICPO.

The image was a Trollface.

"What is the meaning of this, Aizawa!" Yelled one of the american delegation, shocked and angry. "Are you trying to mock the work this organisation does?"

"It wasn't me, I swear it!"

"Then who was it?" Suddenly, all the lights went off. A voice spoke from the darkness; lilting, haunting and unimaginably eerie.

"It was me."

"Who are you?" asked one of the Americans, his voice sounding scared.

"I am known as Star." Star's words caused an uproar, and panic - the darkness was absolute, so nobody could see anything.

"Star...? whispered Soichiro to himself. "The one Tsuki was connected to?" He stood up - for all the good that did - and banged his hand on the table. Silence fell, as everyone tried to make out which direction the sound had come from.

"What do you want, Star? Why have you shown yourself to us like this?"

"Oh, it's quite simple, really. L's face will not be shown on TV. He will not be revealed to anyone. Do that, and you can just forget all about me." Whispers broke out again.

"I thought this guy was L."

"Me too."

"What's he got to persuade interpol to do that?"

"An interesting question." Star's voice personally addressed the last speaker, who gave an undignified squeak. "You are all aware that this blackout is my doing. What you have failed to realise, however, is that I am capable of doing this to whoever I like, for as long as I like. I could cause a worldwide shutdown of communications if I wanted to. I figure that it's safe to say I could be a much worse enemy than Kira if I so desired, so you would do well to stay on my good side. Goodnight." And then the lights came back on. It was as if nothing had happened.

Light did not bother to stick around and watch the commotion he had created. Instead, he went back to the text file and talked to L.

"Did you really have to declare yourself as that much of a threat? Now the ICPO will end up trying to catch you, Star-kun."

"Probably not. It was fun to see the looks on their faces, though."

"Unfortunately, Star-kun forgets that I do not have access to whatever night-vision camera he was using, so was unable to see their reactions."

"I might send you a tape."

"That would be nice of Star-kun. So, would Star-kun like to share why exactly he felt the need to save me - has he become emotionally attached?"

"Logically, the Kira case has a higher percentage chance of being solved without the person heading it up dying, but yes - I seem to have become emotionally attached to you." There was no point in hiding the truth, Light mused, although he was slightly worried that this emotional attachment might cloud his reasoning and prevent him from using logical thought.

"That is interesting to know. Did this attachment occur before or after the death of Tsuki-kun?"

"I do not know. Tsuki reminded me of myself, in many ways."

"You seem to be blaming yourself."

"I told Tsuki-kun to go in front of the camera, as a test of Kira's power."

"Do you regret it?"

"No."

"Then it is useless to blame yourself."

"I do not blame myself; on the contrary, I find it quite liberating that my successor is no longer fraternising with my rival. How are your successors?"

"They are doing well. I must ask how Star-kun knows of this fact."

"L, I can hack any system in the world. You know this very well. Obviously it was easy to figure out the location and purpose of the orphanage founded by Watari, which I will not name here because you are too paranoid for your own good."

"I am not paranoid; it is justified. Ever since a certain case three years ago, which I'm sure you know all about, I have had a strong belief in the supernatural. Kira may very well be watching us now." A long pause, and then:

"You really are paranoid. This is the most secure transmission on the planet right now, and you still don't want to say the name of the case?"

"It may be secure, but not from Star-kun."

"You got me there, L. Well, I know when I'm not wanted. I'll be going now; you better find Kira pretty soon or Interpol will forget my threats and go after your head again."

"Understood. Goodbye, Star-kun."

"Goodbye, L."

'File Interpol(txt) has been deleted.'

Light jumped straight through Cyberspace back to his living quarters at the Cult. Once there, he grabbed one of his stuffed toys.

"Hmmm..." holding the toy - he found it strangely comforting to revert to this childlike behaviour, but only when he really needed to - his mind whirred through the options. "Sol. I need to talk to you."

"Yes Star-sama?"

"L mentioned a case three years ago, involving supernatural powers." An approximation of a shocked gasp came from Sol.

"Do you mean...?"

"There is a seventy-eight percent chance that L was referring to the Manipulator case. The only reason it is not higher is because I had faith that I had managed to clean up the records and find someone appropriate to frame before L became interested, but I always wondered... It's exactly the sort of case he takes. Why didn't he? Or did he? During that time, I had to pause my actions as Star, so it's not like I would have known." Light was bouncing ideas off empty air. This would probably look insane to anyone else, but it was his modus operandi when attempting to solve a case. There was a reason, after all, why he had insisted the walls to his rooms were soundproofed - it would not do to have the Cult thinking their Chosen One had gone crazy, although they would probably just assume that it was some kind of communication with their fictional deity.

"I am sorry, Star-sama."

"Do not be. The Manipulator case, while being rather messy, was cleared up, and I got you from it. It is over ninety-five percent likely that L would not trace anything back to Star, and even less that he knows about CST. It was probably merely an interesting case to him." Still, it was definitely worth looking into. Light did not like to be in the dark like this about L's thoughts.


	12. Chapter 12

_"And believe me I am Still Alive._

_I'm doing science and I'm Still Alive._

_I feel FANTASTIC and I'm Still Alive."_

Light sat on a cushion on the floor of his room, munching a cookie. Yes, it had definitely been worth looking into.

L had not been referring to the Manipulator case. Instead, at the same time, another case had come up, in Los Angeles. Three serial murders, but security around them was incredibly tight. Actually, that was an understatement - there were no details available on the internet, not even stored in the most secure networks.

This only heightened Light's interest. Whatever these 'LABB' cases had been about, there was no doubt that L wanted it to remain permanently hidden from everyone, even Star. That could only mean that it was something to do with Wammy's House, or one of the children there.

But investigation into that could wait until he was not on a time schedule. Right now, he was looking for Kira, and Kira had made a mistake.

The two tapes, 3 & 4, both contained the same predictions - two newscasters, set to be broadcasting at Six o'clock tomorrow, would die of heart attacks, one minute apart. Kira had given Light two victims to experiment with. What would happen if he changed their fates, killed them before their specific times? Would they show a core of the dead, thus meaning that Kira's power hadn't been their cause of death?

Light was going to find out. That night, he approached the house of one of the broadcasters. Standing on the front lawn, he gave instructions to Sol, and then threw a paper plane through the window of the house. Six minutes and twenty-nine seconds later, the front door opened and the broadcaster - his name was Jeego - walked out with a blank expression on his face. Together, they walked through the moonlit streets, Tsuki almost skipping to keep up with the pace the older man set.

They came to an old, abandoned warehouse. Inside, Light proceeded to take out a knife and give it to Jeego, who nodded and slit his throat. Eyes wide and panicked, he fell to the ground, gasping.

"What... did you... do to me... Who are you..." The life faded from him, and Tsuki stepped back respectfully (also, he didn't want to accidentally create another Tricker). A minute passed.

Light entered the ghost world, and looked at the corpse. It had a core. Well, that was good to know. He approached the corpse.

"...Hello? Is anyone there? Please, anybody...?"

"I am here." The soul suddenly noticed Light.

"Who are you?"

"I am me."

"Who am I?"

"You are Jeego. Do you remember?"

"No... Yes! Wait, you're that girl. You killed me! You monster!" Light disconnected, leaving the spirit sobbing imaginary tears. There did not seem to be any change from the usual. Light jumped back to his body, and pulled out a letter. He set it down at Jeego's feet, with the knife, and then walked away, out of the warehouse, his scar glowing faintly in the moonlight.

Back by the corpse, the letter lay inconspicuously.

'To anyone who finds this.  
It has come to my attention that Kira intends to kill me at Six o'clock tomorrow. He knows my name and face, so I am unable to prevent this. But I wish to die on my own terms. Goodbye."

The next broadcaster, going by the name of Yuki Akato, was harder. Light intended to wait until Kira's heart attack actually happened, and then kill him. This would determine when exactly, Kira's powers came into effect - at the moment of death, or before?

That morning, one Yuki Akato called in sick. At Five thirty that afternoon, he invited a small girl with a silver streak on her face into her home.

Sitting on the couch, Tsuki flicked the TV on. Twenty minutes to go. He wondered if the police would allow Sakura TV to show the tapes or not. Probably not. Still, it was worth watching.

At Six o'clock exactly, Yuki Akato gave a convulsion, and fell off the sofa. Tsuki quickly hopped down and decapitated her with the dagger he kept on his person - while not usually his style, he needed a quick kill, before Kira's heart attack took effect.

Yuki had no core of the dead. The corpse laid there silently in the feding sunlight. Light did not bother to try and talk to her this time. He made to leave.

"Open Up! Police!" Damn, he'd forgotten that. Of course L would want to confirm that the two people were dead. Tsuki hid himself in a cupboard - the police wouldn't search the house for a couple more minutes, and he still had plenty of time to act out his backup plan.

Of course Light had a backup plan - he always did. Pulling out his phone (untraceable) he sent a quick text message.

One little known fact about Yuki Akato was the fact that she had mafia contacts. It was the reason why Kira had targeted her. It was also the reason why she had a panic button in the house. Earlier, Light had hacked his way into the system and made it so the text message, if sent, would activate that panic button.

Light didn't know exactly what the button did, but it was guaranteed to be easier to slip away in the confusion.

It took around thirty seconds for something to happen. That something happened to be a scream from one of the police officers, who had most likely found the body. Really, the police were supposed to be professionals - couldn't they at least control their fear reactions?

A minute later, there was the sound of breaking glass. A quick check of the Ghost World, and it looked like some mafia team had come.

Excellent.

"What was that?"

"I don't know!" Scaredy-cats.

"Come on guys, just get the body and get out of here!"

"But Soichiro ordered us to do a full search..."

"I don't care! This place is creeping me out!" A gunshot. Then more screams - shock, not pain. Light slipped out the cupboard and walked calmly out the front door. Behind him, there were more shouts. Light had to stifle a laugh. Both sides had no idea the other would be there. Still, it was probably morally wrong to just leave them to fight it out, so Light felt obliged to step in before anyone else died. He didn't care much for human life, but the police probably didn't deserve this.

Tsuki slipped off the backpack and grabbed from within a black cape with a hood. Putting it on, he turned and dashed back inside.

The frantic shouts of the policemen were cut off when a small figure dressed in black came flying down the hallway where they had taken up defensive positions.

"What are you doing?"

"Saving your lives. I've no idea why." The figure rounded the corner and was gone from their sights.

The hit squad that had been called here were also shocked speechless.

"Who is this kid?" A laughing mockery sounded throughout the room. Tsuki swept back the hood and stared, an insane glint in his eyes and his scar flashing eerily in the streak of moonlight from the window. The laughter silenced. Tsuki spoke, using the same lilting voice he used whenever he wanted to creep someone out.

"Oh, humans are so fun to play with. You were after little Yuki-chan, yes? I killed her." And then there was shattered glass everywhere as Tsuki jumped through the closed window.

"Get after him!" A couple of the hitmen pursued, and the rest scattered into the darkness. The police were safe.

Tsuki made a motion with his hand and one of the hitmen suddenly stopped, before running back the way he had came. The other one was left to face Tsuki. He pulled his gun, aimed it at Tsuki, and shot. Tsuki collapsed to the ground.

The hitman breathed a sigh of relief, and tried to calm his racing heart. What the heck had gone wrong- huh?

Tsuki got back up. The scar seemed to glow silver, burning itself into the man's mind.

"Goodbye." And then Tsuki turned and fled.

The man stayed there and attempted to get over the fact that he had just shot someone - in the heart, no less - and they had gotten back up. One of his comrades found him like that, and took him back to headquarters. He would never forget that silver scar.

Well, that hadn't gone too well.

Sure, Light had learned a bit about Kira's powers - Kira was not infallible, obviously. But that meant Light was no closer to capturing him. He had a little look at the investigation team's progress - they had become suspicious of one Misa Amane, and L was planning to bring her in for questioning soon. Good for them, Light had better things to do, such as to try and find more info on the mysterious LABB cases.

After many hours of searching, he had managed to find a grand total of one name: Rue Ryuzaki. It lay inside a database of people having shopped at a particular food store which had been near one of the murder sites. Light's attention was caught by this name, mainly because it was the one L used as an alias - perhaps there was a connection? After thorough checks, he was sure that it had something to do with the case, because Rue Ryuzaki did not exist on the internet, almost as if someone had meticulously gone through and wiped his name from every record where it was. That took a lot of power and influence.

Looking for phantom data is much harder than looking for the real thing. It was like searching for a specific type of hole where there should be something there. Neverless, Light managed it, albeit relying heavily on his ability to perceive the internet as Cyberspace (he very much doubted there was another soul who could do the same thing), and was able to perform a partial data restore.

Rue Ryuzaki had been a private investigator in Los Angeles, employed by the families of the victims. He had worked alongside Naomi Misora in the LABB cases, and was fond of strawberry jam, if the records of supermarket receipts were anything to go by. That was about it (the restore was only partial. There were some things which couldn't be recovered).

Naomi Misora.

Light munched on another cookie. Naomi had had an odd reaction to L's alias when the two had met in the hotel. This was obviously the cause. It was about sixty percent chance that she had information on the LABB cases and was willing to share it with him. She and her fiance, Raye, had left for America before the Sakura TV incident, so it was likely she did not know of Tsuki's 'Death'. Therefore, the best cause of action was-

"Lord?" Light hated it when his thought process was interrupted.

"Yes, Teru-kun?"

"I have the package you requested, Lord."

"Leave it outside, Teru-kun. Don't come in."

"As you wish, Lord." There was a muffled thump and then the sound of retreating footsteps.

Now, back to his earlier thoughts. The best course of action would be to go in person to question Misora, as L had no doubt warned her not to speak anything about the case over the internet, for fear of jeopardising his data wipe. That would mean that he had to get on a flight again, and the last time he had done that, it hadn't gone so well (the officials had refused to let him leave the airport until his guardian showed up to collect him, and he had had to infiltrate air traffic control and crash a plane on the runway so he could escape in the chaos.) But, he had Sol now, who could act as guardian. The only problem was finding a suitable body, one that would not freak out if Sol had to relinquish control for some reason.

"Teru-kun, wait." The sound of shuffling feet, and then:

"What is it you require, Lord?"

"Pack a bag for three nights. We're going to America."


	13. Chapter 13

_"I'm not even angry_

_I'm being so sincere right now."_

Naomi Misora was quite surprised when her phone screen went white, before suddenly text appeared on it.

Tsuki says hello.

"What?" she whispered incredulously at it.

Tsuki does not understand the question, could Naomi Misora please elaborate?

"But, you're supposed to be dead!"

Tsuki would like to stress that he is very much alive, although he would prefer if the task force were kept unaware of this fact.

"L said you were dead!"

L is not infallible.

"How did you find us?"

Raye Penber is currently in possession of a transmitting device that allows Star to track his location. From there, it was a simple matter of tracking Naomi Misora's phone.

"What!" Raye rolled over in bed to look at her.

"Hey honey, what's the matter? Are you still stressed out over the Kira case? Are you talking to L?" He swiped the phone from her and looked at it blearily.

"Look, Raye, I can explain-"

"You don't need to,honey. But I can't see why you would be going through your music collection at 3 o'clock a.m." He handed the phone back to her. It did indeed, display her music collection - including some songs that she was sure weren't on there before. Star certainly kept good alibis.

"Raye, I'm just going to put the phone on charge, OK? I'll come back to bed after that."

"Alright, honey." She got out of bed and slipped on a dressing gown, then walked out the room.

"What do you want at this time of night?"

Tsuki wishes to know information on the LABB case.

Naomi drew in a shocked breath.

"What? Why?"

Tsuki believes it may help the Kira investigation.

"If so, why not just ask L?"

Tsuki feels that would be cheating.

"How do I know you really are Tsuki, or Star, or whatever? You could be an impostor!"

Would a face-to-face meeting be adequate proof to Naomi Misora?

"You want me to come to Japan? Sorry, no."

Naomi Misora misunderstood. Tsuki is currently on a flight to America. Tsuki will arrange a meeting with Naomi Misora on her own terms.

"Why would Star let you do this?"

Tsuki feels he is ready to begin tackling this avenue of investigation, while Star carries on other cases around the world.

"He's leaving you in charge of the Kira investigation? You're five!"

Tsuki would like to remind Naomi Misora that his mental age is significantly higher than five, and assures Naomi Misora that this arrangement is only temporary, until either L or Tsuki find a lead on the Kira investigation.

"So you're saying he's left you in charge because he thinks it's a dead end, while he goes to solve other cases."

Naomi Misora has guessed correctly. But Tsuki wishes to prove to Star that he is able to make headway on this case, even if that means investigating improbable leads.

"Still, is Star accompanying you to America? You're awfully young to be flying on your own."

Tsuki will not answer that question, as it may lead to the discovery of Star's identity.

Naomi sighed. She knew the feeling, of being overlooked and handed cases that nobody could solve, and then following up ever tinier leads in an attempt to find something - anything, because you were determined to prove yourself. It was not easy for a female FBI agent to rise through the ranks. It seems like Tsuki was suffering the same problem, and for a five year old... that was harsh.

"Alright, I'll help. If you come talk to me, I'll answer your questions about the LABB case."

Tsuki says thank you to Naomi Misora, and would like to remind her that Raye Penber is expecting her back in bed by now.

"Can you delete this screen-thing?"

In answer, the file wiped itself from Naomi's phone, and was never seen again. Naomi yawned sleepily and trudged back to bed, having connected the phone to the charging socket in the kitchen.

Sitting on a plane that was nearing Chicago Airport, Light couldn't help but smile. Humans could be manipulated so easily if you knew what made them tick, and it was nice to know that he had been right about the problems Naomi had had to face as a woman in the intelligence services and how that would affect her mentality.

Tomorrow would be a day of confrontations, of questions, of answers.

Snuggling up to the toy panda he had brought with him, he went again to check L's investigation - Misa Amane, eh? He would search her for the strange paper when he got back. This was more important.

This outing served the purpose of gathering information on the LABB case, which L apparently had personal ties to. The case that had probably saved Light from being discovered by L three years ago with the fiasco of the Manipulator case. It very much intrigued Light, and he knew he was missing something big about this case, something that gave it a personal tie to L.

He would have to wait and see what it was.

Naomi looked at her phone again. It was morning, and Raye had just left for work. The second he was out the house, it had rung.

Has Naomi Misora chosen a time and place for our meeting?

"No. Where do you want to meet?"

Tsuki would suggest Naomi Misora's apartment.

"You can get here?"

Tsuki would not have suggested it if that was not the case.

"What time, then?"

Four o'clock p.m. is the best time. Tsuki knows that Naomi Misora would like some time to prepare, and Raye Penber will not be back until six-thirty.

"He's usually home at six."

Tsuki knows that the subway trains will be down for maintenance for a week, starting at noon today, so Raye Penber will have to walk. He will be back at six-thirty.

"Very well, four o'clock it is then." The phone went dead.

Naomi waited half an hour, before picking up another phone, which she never normally used, and dialling a number.

"Naomi Misora?" came the scrambled voice at the other end.

"Yes. L, Tsuki has contacted me, as you said would happen."

"Good. Have you requested a face-to-face meeting?"

"Yes. Tsuki will be at my apartment at four o'clock."

"I will arrange for him to be taken into custody."

"What?"

"It is for his own benefit."

"But still, he's only five. Do we even have the right to arrest him?"

"I believe that Tsuki was somehow involved in the killings of two Kira victims that died before their appropriate times. That is enough to make him a murder suspect. Do not worry, Tsuki will be treated well. I simply wish to know why Star felt the need to fake his death, and how it was managed."

"Alright." L hung up.

Naomi Misora held her head in her hands. Why was this happening to her? She liked Tsuki, she really did, but the boy was a loose cannon, and L was right when he said he needed to be brought in.

Seven hours to go.

Light shifted awkwardly in his hotel room. He had the strangest feeling, like someone had just walked over his grave (impossible, for obvious reasons). Mentally, he went over all facets of what would happen today - was there anything he had missed? Any small detail?  
He honestly hoped not. The plan he had constructed depended on a number of unknown variables acting as predicted, and while Light was usually confident that people would follow his manipulations, there was always the chance that L, being L, would see through things and mess up his whole plan.

"Sol."

"Yes, Star-sama?"

"It's three o'clock. Time to go. And when we're out of the hotel, please refer to me as Tsuki."

"Yes, Tsuki." Mikami Teru opened the hotel door and let Tsuki out, then crouched down. Tsuki jumped up onto Teru's shoulders and the man straightened up. Together, they left the building, just another father and son - or father and daughter, since everyone seemed to automatically assume Tsuki was a girl - on their way to see the sights of Chicago.

L was crouched in front of the laptop, thinking. When Tsuki had collapsed at Sakura TV, he had only been sixty-two percent sure of his death. He had been so convinced that Star would not leave his successor to die to easily, and had instead faked it (to leave Kira's suspicion? To leave L's suspicion?). This theory was further supported by the testimony of one of the police at that incident yesterday, when the mafia had unexpectedly shown up at Yuki Akato's house (why had that happenned? did they find out about Kira's threat?). He said he had seen a child dressed all in black, with a scar down one side of his face.

L had no idea why Tsuki was there (had he been the one that had decapitated Yuki?) but he intended very much to find out.

"Tsuki, you have underestimated me."

Light smiled as Teru made his way through the city.

"L, you have underestimated me."

"I will find out your reasons for your actions, I swear it."

"You haven't even come close to finding the real truth."

"This game you are playing-"

"- that we have been living, "

"-is at an end. I will find you, Star, and win the game."

"Good luck on trying to find Star after this, L." Light laughed as he imagined the conversation in his head. Perfectly aware that L was doing the exact same thing. They both were so attuned to each other that they knew of the other's answers. "The game advances to the next level..."

"This game gets serious..."

"Now!" they both said, in unison.


	14. Chapter 14

_"Even though you broke my heart._

_And killed me._

_And tore me to pieces._

_And threw every piece into a fire."_

*knock knock knock.*

Naomi Misora opened the door, to see Tsuki standing there. It was three fifty-nine. Tsuki waved at her.

"Hello Naomi Misora." It was strange to hear Tsuki speaking in english.

"Come in." Tsuki brushed past her, to the sofa in the front room of the flat. He pulled out a cushion and sat down half-lotus on it, on top of the sofa back. Naomi had to restrain herself from laughing - he looked really cute like that, and it was hard to take him seriously. "So, you've come to me for information on the LABB cases."

"Yes. There is nothing on the internet. I've assumed that L performed a data wipe. The only thing I have managed to find is a name: Rue Ryuzaki, a private investigator, and, of course, you - the one who solved the case."

"How did you even manage to find that?"

"L cannot erase everything."

"Well... Rue Ryuzaki was not his real name. It was simply an alias. He was also the person who committed the LABB murders."

"What was his trademark?"

"What?" It was unnerving to be interrogated like this by a little child perched on top of a sofa.

"The LABB murders were serial. That means that Rue must have left something at the murder sites, something to tie them all together, otherwise they would not have been assumed to be linked."

"At the scene, he left clues as to the location of the next crime. And also, Wara Ningyo dolls were nailed to the wall, a decreasing number with each murder."

"How many to start with?"

"Four."

"Three murders were committed. So you caught Rue before he could commit the fourth? Good work, Misora."

"er... Thank you, I guess."

"Now, about these clues - were they hard? I can guess by your expression - don't look at me like that, you wear your emotions too openly, of course I noticed - that they were. Ah, so that was what called in L. I'm guessing that the FBI, dimwitted fools as they are, were unable to make head or tail of the clues until the next murder victim was revealed, at which point they suddenly made sense and they wanted to shoot themselves for missing something so obvious."

Naomi was taken aback.

"Not exactly. The clues were never solved by the FBI."

"Yes, I do need to stop overestimating intelligence services, don't I? They're hopeless, really."

"That may be true, but don't just say that! If you were given those clues, you wouldn't be able to work them out either, so you cannot blame them."

"I doubt it. I've always thought rationally, unlike most humans my age - or any age, for that matter." Tsuki tilted his head, weighing up evidence. "If Rue was leaving these clues, he would have needed to be sure that nothing incriminating could be worked out from them that might lead to his capture. Therefore, he would need to guide the investigation. Obviously, he did, as investigating the case himself would count. Did the clues stop once L took the case?"

"No. But Rue didn't know L had taken the case."

"Oh, if Rue was leaving clues like this, then you can be sure he knew L would take the case. L is attracted to difficult challenges, much like myself. He would have been on the lookout for anything that would signify L was on the prowl. How many investigators did L use as a shield?"

"Just me."

"Sloppy, but perhaps it was needed. So Rue would have known from the moment you began to investigate that L was there. He made no attempt to hide clues?"

"No."

"Then the clues were meant to be solved. That would mean Rue meant them as a challenge to L. Maybe just because he was overconfident, but I don't think so. I think the reason Rue committed the murders was specifically so L would investigate, which hints that he has a personal tie to L. Am I correct?"

Naomi Misora was dumbfounded. This child... had worked out in a few minutes what had taken her days of investigation.

"You are correct."

"What was his name?"

"His name? Why would you want to know that?"

"Why - do you think I might be Kira?"

Naomi didn't really know what to think anymore. The sweet little boy who had charmed everyone back in Japan was gone, the mask discarded once it was no longer of use.

"You seem like the type of person who would be." Tsuki scowled.

"I find that an insult to my intelligence. Kira makes rash decisions without weighing up the consequences in his head. While I may sometimes appear to do so, the reason is simply because my thought processes work faster than other humans."

"You think Kira is stupid?"

"I think everyone is stupid, to varying degrees. You are familiar with the Lind L. Tailor broadcast?" Naomi nodded, unsure of where this was going. "It was in Japanese."

"It was aimed at Japan. Of course it would be in Japanese."

"L had announced that it was a worldwide broadcast; it should have been in English, with Japanese subtitles. The fact that both L and Kira overlooked this glaringly obvious fact in their haste to outwit the other only proves my hypothesis: humans are inherently flawed."

"You are a human, you know."

"Obviously."

"Beyond Birthday. That was his name."

"Odd name, that. I take it that was what named the cases BB?"

"No." Tsuki checked his watch.

"Alright." he said. "Did Beyond Birthday commit, or at least attempt to commit, suicide?"

"How the heck could you know that?"

"It's what I would've done." He waved away her shocked look. "Not because I felt guilty, of course. But Beyond wanted to specifically challenge L. That probably extended to a desire to commit the perfect crime, one that L would never solve. An easy way to do that would be to either die, or to fake your death convincingly enough. It's worked for me in the past." Naomi's mind flashed back to the Sakura TV incident L had told her about. At the time, it had seemed impossible for Tsuki to still be alive, but here he was - did that mean he had failed to fake his death convincingly enough for L? but then, that couldn't have been the incident he was referring to...

"How old are you Tsuki?" And how many times have you faked your death - it went unsaid, so Light decided not to acknowledge it.

"No idea. Star never told me my birthday." Tsuki checked his watch again. "Ok, another question. Was Beyond Birthday in possession of any kind of supernatural power?"

"Huh?"

"L mentioned something interesting."

"No, he didn't. At least, I don't think so."

"Well, you wouldn't know, I suppose. How did you meet Beyond, Misora?"

"He was... hiding under a bed at the first crime scene."

"Tell me everything you can remember about him."

So she spoke about their first meeting, how Rue had given her his business card, about his love for sweet things, including way too much sugar in coffee, about how he seemed to love strawberry jam. She even told him about his annoying habit of addressing her as 'Misora.'

"Did you ever tell him your name?"

"What do you mean, of course I- no." Naomi felt a horrible feeling settle in her stomache. "I never did. Oh my gosh, I completely missed that!"

Tsuki's eyes flew open wide in shock, genuine shock.

"...do you have any idea what kind of ties Beyond had to L?"

"No." That was her story, and she was sticking to it. Tsuki rolled his eyes, showing that he didn't believe the lie. The shock was quickly fading from his face, the carefully constructed mask sliding back.

"fine." and just like that, the mask was back in place. Tsuki checked his watch again. Four twenty-eight. "looks like I'll have to find out that by myself."

"Why do you keep checking your watch?" Tsuki tilted his head, and stared at Naomi thoughtfully.

"You really want to know?" Four twenty-nine.

"Yes." could Tsuki possibly know? About the police, who were going to storm the apartment and arrest him in the next minute.

"Oh, well, I guess it's because... I'm sorry, Naomi Misora."

There was a gunshot. Naomi Misora stared down in horror at the spreading red stain.

"No..." Tsuki looked at her, his eyes blank.

"Open Up! Police!" there was a brief pause, and then a slam as the door burst open. Naomi took no notice. She was still staring at the blood, which was now dripping onto the floor.

"You knew..." was all she could say. Tsuki nodded.

"Are you alright? We heard the gunsho-" the police stood, stock still, at the scene in front of them.

"Goodbye, Naomi Misora..." and then Tsuki's eyes closed and he toppled off the sofa. With a thunk, he landed gently on the floor and the stain over his torso continued to spread. Naomi snapped out of her shock.

"Do you guys have a med kit?" The police shook their head "Call 911, then! Quickly!"

But it was too late. Naomi could tell from the way Tsuki's eyes were glazed over, that there was no life anymore. The little boy was dead. Her eyes whipped to the shattered glass of the window - who had shot the bullet? There was nobody in sight.

When the ambulance came, they too knew there was no hope. Still, they went through the motions with a defibrillator, before finally covering the body with a white sheet.

"I'm sorry for your loss." whispered one of the paramedics to her as she rode in the back of the ambulance. Naomi's eyes began to swell with tears again, but she blinked them back.

Once the ambulance had finally arrived at the hospital, she called L.

"Did you manage to take him into custody?"

"No. Tsuki is dead." There was silence on the other end of the line, then:

"Did he resist?"

"No! He was... shot. By somebody. It came from outside."

"I am inclined to believe that Tsuki was not killed."

"Believe that all you want. This time, we have the body. He's dead alright."

Light watched the conversation quietly, calmly. This was the stage where it all could go wrong, and he needed to be on hand to sort out any mess-ups that might occur.

L had managed to piece together the murders of the two Kira victims, and conclude that Tsuki was alive. He had expected nothing less of the man, but unless he did not do something, then L would reveal his existence to the Task Force and once again force him to stay in that stupid hotel room. That would not do, so Light had had to find a way to fake his death more convincingly.

He had posted a bounty of 10,000USD for anyone who could kill the strange black figure with the scar on his face, making it look as if one of the Mafia had ordered it. Then, he had hacked the business of one of the underworld locators, and force-fed them information on where he was going to be. Lastly, he had employed the services of a hitman known as Tengo. At 4:30 exactly, when the police were due to raid his apartment, he would be shot and die. The body would be taken to the morgue, and confirmed as dead. Autopsies were not performed on children, Light knew that, so he would be safe. After having his body stay in the morgue for a week (a long enough amount of time for L to be sure that Tsuki wasn't faking his death by puffer fish poison or similar) it would mysteriously vanish. L would have to conclude he was dead this time.

But, then again, he was putting himself in a risky position by allowing them to have his body. If they did decide on an autopsy he would have to stop it before it happened, or they would notice straight away that the body was unnatural. Luckily, Light had predicted that L would not want to interfere with any mysterious 'resurrection plans' that Star might have for Tsuki by cutting the body up, so an autopsy would not be performed. There were also a whole host of other problems, but they could be dealt with - Light just needed the proper leverage.

Which he was going to get, now.

L stared at the laptop. What had Star done? he had assumed that Tsuki would again fake his death, and had looked. He had found the bounty, and tracked the hitman. 'One Step Ahead' Tengo was now in police custody.

His assumption had been that Tsuki would have been shot on the balcony, and angled it so he would fall. Star would pick up Tsuki before the police arrived and everyone would assume he had died. He had planned for that eventuality. But Tsuki leaving a corpse? That was hard to explain, and L desperately wanted to perform an autopsy to find out how Tsuki had faked his death - using a poison, perhaps?  
...except he couldn't, because that would probably kill Tsuki, and then Star would have reason to blame him for the death.

"Ryuzaki, look, I know you like Tsuki. But he's not as important as the Kira case! Misa Amane is in custody, at your orders. Aren't you going to do anything about her?" Watari looked concerned as he slid another slice of cake towards L, his sixteenth that day.

"I see no use, Watari." Misa just believed she had been captured by a stalker. She knew nothing about Kira. But L had been so sure - all the evidence pointed to Misa. Was it possible that as soon as Kira was taken into custody, the power moved on, leaving no memory of it?

If that was the case, the investigation was doomed. It was a depressing thought.

"L, you must do something! Either interrogate her or let her go!" L sighed and turned his attention to Misa, who was lying limp in her restraints, probably asleep. The only interesting thing she had done was when she had first arrived, so he called up surveillance tapes of that.

"...I want to die." a pause. "kill me. Just kill me. I don't want to live like this anymore." another pause. "No. Kill me, please. Why not?" a long pause. "...alright. I give up." and that was it. Misa had slumped over and when she next awoke, her personality had changed completely.

Was it possible that she wasn't talking to the cameras? What if there was something else there, something only Kira could see?

His thoughts drifted back to Tsuki.

"I wonder what Star is doing now..."

Star watched him from the laptop, trying hard not to laugh.

'Time to get that leverage.'

Then he vanished into the depths of cyberspace, only to reappear in a certain orphanage in Winchester, England. It was night.

Tsuki has joined the chat.

Matt has joined the chat.


	15. Chapter 15

_"Go ahead and leave me._

_I think I'd prefer to stay inside._

_Maybe you'll find someone else to help you."_

Matt looked at the screen of his 3DS. It was past lights out in Wammy's House, but he was wide awake.

Tsuki says: You ready?

Matt says: You bet I am.

Matt plugged in the headphones, and stuck the 3DS in his pocket. Then he slipped out of bed and left the room.

"Remember, Roger's office is the second door on the right, down two flights of stairs." The synthesised voice did little to calm his nerves; he did not know the punishment for sneaking around after dark, accessing secure information, and sharing it with someone on the outside, but it had to be bad. Still, it was worth it - plus, it was just like the stealth section of a game, so he should be good at it.

"A teacher is patrolling the corridor ahead. Go into the room on the right and close the door." He did as instructed, and heard the lock click, and then footsteps walk past.

He had never seen such a blatant display of Star's power before, and it only served to prove further that Tsuki was who he said he was. No other person had access to the ability to hack electronic locks and get surveillance footage from what had to be one of the most secure systems in the world - even Matt was unable to crack it, although it had been designed so secure specifically to keep him out, he was sure of it.

"The teacher is out of line of sight. Continue." It was a thoroughly nerve-wracking experience, but Matt managed. He was able to get to Roger's office without alerting anyone to his presence.

"Now, are you going to tell me what you wanted me to do this for?" He was not close enough for the 3DS mic to pick up his voice, but he was certain Tsuki would hear him, because would be watching the surveillance tapes of the room he was in. Matt was not worried about being seen on them anymore, as Tsuki's ability to wipe people from the CCTV footage in real time was one of the first things he had shown Matt to convince him that this scheme might actually work.

"A little longer. Somewhere in this room, there is a secret exit. I am unable to discern where, as it operates entirely mechanically and so is immune to me."

"Why would Roger go to the trouble of all of this?" whispered Matt.

"To keep me out." Suddenly, Matt didn't think this was such a good idea. If Watari, L and Roger had gone to this length to secure their information against Star, then perhaps it was a very bad idea to do this.

"I'm not going any further until you tell me exactly what you want with this information."

"Very well. I am searching for the records of one Beyond Birthday, better known as B to the children here." Matt gulped. Yes, he had heard the legends of the boy who had gone insane; tried to create a case that L couldn't solve, and was now rotting in prison after murdering three people.

"Why?"

"I believe Beyond was in possession of a special ability to discern people's names. I need all the details I can get on that ability."

"Do you want the ability for yourself?" Soft, ringing laughter came through the headphones.

"No, nothing like that. Kira, the mass murderer that L is trying to catch, can now kill with only a face. I know that his method of killing requires a name - it is central. Therefore, I have deduced that Kira is able to somehow know a person's name by seeing their face."

"What about facial recognition? Kira could have hacked the database." The laughter came again.

"Yes, I thought of that myself. I had to be sure, so I gave Kira a target whose name was not in any database." Matt stopped his search, dread creeping into his stomach.

"You gave him... L?"

"No. I had Tsuki show himself on camera."

"So you aren't Tsuki, then."

"Not this time. I am Star." Matt felt awkward at that. What do you say to your idol when he reveals that you've been talking to him all along, and you know he is perfectly aware of your obsession with him?

"So you are... I thought so." The laughter came again. Star obviously saw right through his lie.

"Hmm. Have you found it yet?"

"You know very well I haven't!" Hissed Matt.

"Try the clock." Matt went over to it. The pendulum which should swing from side to side was still. Odd, that, because Roger liked to keep things in perfect working order...

Matt opened the glass case of the grandfather clock and pushed the pendulum to the side. There was a soft noise of something sliding into place, before the whole clock swung to the side, leaving a passageway behind.

"You knew it was there all along, didn't you." It was a statement, not a question, so Star did not bother to answer. Matt walked through, into a small room. He clicked on his torch, and saw boxes of files on the shelves.

"Where do I look?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. I have never seen this before." Matt picked a box at random, and began looking through.

"This one's just a load of files. Thierry Morello... Tamsen Ikha... I don't recognise the names. Are they from Wammy's?"

"No. They are the criminal records of people L has in his employ. He wiped their records from the system, but I guess he needed a backup somewhere. Try the next box."

The next box was quite large. Matt pulled out the first file. It had an 'A' on the front.

"I think I've found it!"

"Take the 3DS out of your pocket, and put it on the table. I need to see this." Matt did as he was told, silently wondering if this was what Watari felt when he carried L's laptop to interpol meetings.

Pulling out the file labeled 'B', he held it up to the 3DS.

"This is the one you wanted, right?"

"Yes." Matt opened the file.

Inside was a load of documents, including a picture of B. He looked slightly insane as he smiled at the camera, and Matt shivered. Really, the spooky surroundings were getting to him.

Aliases used: B, Rue Ryuzaki, BB, Backup.

Real name: Beyond Birthday

Status: Deceased

It went on to describe B's life, including growing up at Wammy's house, and running away. A large section of the file was dedicated to the L.A.B.B. murder cases, and Matt had to make a conscious effort not to throw up when he saw the state of the victims.

"Try to look for anything that mentions names of his victims, and how he knows them."

Eventually, Matt stumbled upon a psychologist's report, of B when he was in prison. The transcript of the Psyche evaluation was present, although the name of the person interviewing Beyond had been blanked out.

-: Beyond, do you know why you are here?

Beyond Birthday: Yes.

-: Do you remember your actions?

Beyond Birthday: Of course I do. Don't you?

-: Can you tell me why you murdered those people?

Beyond Birthday: Oh, I didn't murder them. They were going to die anyway!

-: They were going to die?

Beyond Birthday: Oh, yes they were. You're going to die too, you know. Six years, three months, eight days left. Four hours, twelve

minutes, and forty seven, forty six, forty five-

-: Beyond, this is going nowhere-

Beyond Birthday: Everything goes somewhere, and I'm afraid that you're going to die. Thirty nine, thirty eight-

-: Stop this nonsense!

Beyond Birthday: Oh, it's not nonsense. Those people, I watched their numbers tick down to zero. I was fated to murder them, you see,

so I wasn't my fault. Thirty two, thirty one-

-: You watched their numbers? Beyond, tell me, how could you see these numbers?

Beyond Birthday: Oh, everyone has them. They never change, you see. They hang in the air above you, and tick, tick, tick, right down to

zero. And then you don't have them, because you're dead.

-: You see these numbers above people's heads?

Beyond Birthday: Not just numbers. I see your name, Kate Johnson, and you are going to die. Eighteen, seventeen, sixteen-

The transcript ended there. Matt felt horror creep up his spine.

"B could see people's names and when they were going to die? No wonder he went insane. I wonder, could he see his own lifespan? That would have broken anyone's mind."

"I believe that Kira has somehow gained that power, or something incredibly similar. See if you can find anything else in the file."

There was nothing else in the file on that, but Matt was still drawn to the last page. On it, were two handwritten sentences, the state of the ink showing they had been written fairly recently.

'Beyond birthday has died in prison, of a sudden heart attack. Kira is suspected as the cause of death.'

"It's a pity, really. I was hoping he'd still be alive. I wanted to talk with him about this ability of his. Put the file back, our work here is done." Matt replaced the file, but hesitated to leave.

He looked at the box of files.

He kept looking.

"It's alright, you know. I won't stop you." Matt was surprised, but assumed that, as this was Star he was talking to, he should not be the least bit startled that he could read Matt like a book. Still, he hesitated. "If you don't want me to know, then cover up the 3DS camera. That way, it's just you."

Quickly, Matt made up his mind. He closed the 3DS and put it on the shelf, taking his jacket off and covering it up. Then he went back through the box.

C... F... H... J... L... M.  
He pulled out the M file. In it were two smaller files, one for Matt, and one for Mello. With shaking hands, he gripped his own file and flipped to the first page.

Aliases: Matt, M2, MWM84, Goggles84

(How the heck did they get his hacker name, his hacker codename and the name he used on chatsites anyway? He certainly didn't tell them.)

Real name: Mail Jeevas

Mail Jeevas. The name, was strikingly familiar. Matt felt a tear leak out of his eye.

He had never known his real name. Wammy's had taken him in at the age of two, and everyone here had called him Matt. Mail Jeevas. His name.

He put the file back, and was about to uncover the 3DS when he froze.

Right next to the M file was the L file.

Before he could stop himself, he had pulled out the L file. It was twice as thick as any of the others, and had a few tiny files in it (Linda's was probably there.) Most of it was one big file.

He flipped it open to the first page. The Alias list spanned a whole A4 side , and Matt couldn't help his eyes widening at some of the names. Eraldo Coil? Keith Maxwell, the genius behind Portal?

And down at the bottom, were the words:

Real Name:

He did not read it. At the last moment, he chickened out and shoved the paper back in the file. Who was he, a lowly student at Wammy's house, to presume he had the right to learn L's real name? Replacing the file carefully, he uncovered the 3DS.

"Let's go now. This place gives me the creeps."

Back in his room, later that night, Matt would have a change of heart. He would wish that he had learned L's name. But it would be too late. He could never avoid the security without Star, and Star would have no reason to contact him again. He had said so.

"Tsuki is dead."

"I know."

"I won't talk to you anymore, be warned. This is the last you will hear of me in a long time."

"I know."

"As a word of parting advice, I suggest you stay close to Mello - the boy is the type that could go off the rails if he is not chosen to become the next L." Matt's brain grasped the implication quickly.

"Is L dying?"

"Not at the moment, but Kira may very well end up killing him, and me too. If that is the case, I have set up an automated program on your 3DS for you with instructions on how to take over as Star."

"I see. So Tsuki really is dead, if you have now named me your successor."

"Yes. Goodbye; I hope you will not hear from me again."

That was the last message he would ever get from Star.


	16. Chapter 16

_"As they burned it hurt because I was so happy for you!"_

'File Tsuki(txt) has been created. Would you like to open this file?'

It had been two weeks since Tsuki had been shot. In that time, nothing whatsoever had happened. L had fully expected Tsuki's body to vanish, which would indicate the poison he had used to fake his death had worn off. It never happened, and L was slowly realising that it never would.

Tsuki had died there, in Naomi Misora's flat, and L had done nothing about it. Perhaps if he had known this was not one of Star's schemes, he could have instructed Naomi to meet with Tsuki in someplace more sheltered. By letting the shooting take place, he had effectively left Tsuki to die.

L was currently experiencing a rather large dose of the human emotion known as guilt.

He opened the file.

"I would like to request that Tsuki's body be returned to me so I can give him a funeral."

"Star-kun clearly has the resources to simply take Tsuki-kun without my permission, so why is he asking for it?"

"I knew you would assume that Tsuki was merely faking his death. I left it there to show you that he really has died."

"I am sorry, Star-kun."

"Don't be. It was not your fault."

"Then whose was it?"

"Kira's."

"I fail to see how Kira has caused Tsuki's death, unless of course Tengo is Kira's real name? Has Star-kun found this?"

"No. I have however found almost conclusive proof that Kira can kill in ways other than a heart attack."

"How?"

"In preparation that Tsuki might have to face off with Kira, I had implanted a device into his chest which, upon the heart stopping, would deliver an electrical shock that would start it again immediately. The device worked, and Tsuki lived through Sakura TV. However, Kira was not aware of this immediately, and so Tsuki was able to return to my headquarters. Two days before the shooting, he changed character dramatically, requesting that he be allowed to investigate on his own. I allowed it, thinking it would be good experience. Tsuki went to the houses of one of Kira's victims and murdered them. By now I knew that Tsuki was out of character, and I suspected he was under Kira's control. Tsuki would never normally take life like that." L picked up on the inference almost immediately - Tsuki had taken a life before, just not in this way. He decided not to comment, reminding himself that Star did not work within the law and so could not be expected to hold the same moral standards as it.

"I confronted Tsuki about my suspicions. He agreed - Kira was most likely controlling him. Still, he reported to me of a sudden desire to talk to Naomi Misora in Chicago, and requested to be let go. His reasoning was that if Kira was controlling his actions before death, then he might meet up with him in order to give the information away. I agreed, thinking that Tsuki's life was not necessarily in danger, as I could restart his heart with the implant. Tsuki was shot in a way which destroyed the implant, and died. So I have deduced that Kira must have influenced the shooting."

"Star-kun seems very sure of himself."

"Just speculation at this point. How's the investigation going on your end?"

"I am unable to ascertain the reason why Star-kun feels it is necessary to ask. He could easily use his skills to look at the information himself."

"I believe it is customary to ask when the two people involved are friends. However, I do not see the worth in this, as it decreases efficiency. I have already looked at all your data on Misa Amane."

"Has Star-kun got any other deductions he would like to share?"

"No. I'm stumped. I think there might be a way to test if someone is Kira, however I have no suspects."

"What is this method?"

"That's the same question you asked the task force to determine their loyalty, wasn't it? No, I don't think I'll tell you."

"It would benefit the investigation if you did."

"Can't be bothered. I've no idea why I'm working on this anymore, anyway. I've already lost Tsuki, perhaps it's time to leave before anything else happens."

"You are going to stay."

"Make me."

"You are going to stay, Light Yagami."

Light felt fear creep up his spine. Quickly he typed in his reply - L had narrowed it down this much, so there was no use whatsoever in pretending ignorance.

"How do you know my name."

"I am not inclined to tell you. Will you stay on the investigation, Light-kun?"

"Yes. Don't call me Light-kun."

"Light-kun was the one who insisted the connection was secure. Am I to believe Light-kun was lying?"

"I am not lying, but any mention of my name could have drastic consequences."

"Oh, is that so? Perhaps Light-kun is afraid that Yagami-san will see our conversation. Does Light-kun not want a family reunion?"

"You are enjoying yourself too much, L. Stop using my name."

"I don't think I will. Do not worry, I won't tell on Light-kun. But I would like to know, in return, some details about how Light-kun faked his death and became Star. Light-kun was ten when he started, only two years older than myself."

"No, I will not give you details."

"Has Light-kun forgotten the advantage I now have? Should I announce Star-kun's identity, then he would quickly die by Kira's hand. I should hope Light-kun would be more cooperative with me."

"You have forced my hand, L. I would never have done this otherwise."

"Done what, Light-kun? Is Light-kun confessing to being Kira?"

"I'm not Kira, L Lawliet."

L gasped and dived at the screen. He put his hands over the two words that made up his name and looked around desperately to see if anyone had seen. Nobody was there - of course, it was the middle of the night, so he had not expected there would be, but still...

"Delete it, Light-kun. Right now."

"As you wish." came the reply, glowing on the screen just below his hands. He gingerly took them away.

There on the screen, instead of his name, was the word [Redacted]. He had to fight the urge to laugh.

"Very funny, Light-kun."

"Stop using it!"

"You sound like a petulant child, Light-kun. Yes, I will not reveal it to anyone, but I will use it here. Your face has not been revealed, so if your name got out there would be significantly less danger than what would happen if mine was revealed."

"Fine."

"But this does decrease my suspicions of Light-kun as Kira to below three percent. If he was, his knowledge of my name would mean he could kill me with no further retaliation."

"I thought you said Kira needed just a face to kill?"

"Analysis of the murders shows this 'second Kira' to need a name as well."

"So you still suspect Misa Amane."

"Yes. You do not?"

"I do, however I will not involve myself in the investigation any longer. Make no mistake, I am not quitting, but I won't piggyback off your work. I will catch Kira before you still."

"This relates to your new theory?"

"Yes - I'm not going to tell you what it is. I think it's only fair."

"So Light-kun and I are rivals."

"Yes. Goodbye, Lawliet."

'File Tsuki(txt) has been deleted.'

L's name was up there for less than a second, but it was still enough to make L freak out again. Light laughed silently as he watched L looking around for any observers.

'I did mean what I said, L, but don't think this makes it any easier for you. I'm not just going to give up now.' And then he jumped away through Cyberspace, to the Chicago Hospital Morgue.

Three hours later, a nurse entered the room where Tsuki's body was being held. It was not there. She called the police, but when they dusted for fingerprints they found none. There were no signs of forced entry. All in all, it simply looked as if the body had got up and walked out on its own - but that was impossible, wasn't it?

"What are we going to tell L? He specifically told us not to let anything happen to this corpse!" they discussed in frantic whispers. Something like this would not be forgiven easily, and they all knew if L held a grudge against them then he could make anything happen to them, from a demotion to death.

"I don't know. What can we do?"

"One of us has got to tell him..."

"I vote you, Jane."

"No! Not me! You do it, Andrew!"

"Neither of you need to." The investigators whirled around on hearing the strange voice. Nobody was there. Ringing mechanical laughter sounded around the room.

"Who are you?" They breathed, eyes wide with shock and fear.

"Always the same questions; who are you, what are you doing here, please don't kill me - oh, that last one was not a question, was it? My bad. Please discount it from your memories."

"What are you doing here?"

"See - I even told you that was what you would say, and you said it anyway. Humans are so predictable sometimes. As for what I'm doing here, I'm not really sure myself. Have you got any ideas?"

"You still haven't told us your name - and what do you want from us!"

"What do you want from us... hmm, that's a good one. I should add that to my list of responses. As for my name... well, I've already had a little mishap with that once today, but telling you an alias shouldn't hurt. My name is Star." Frightened gasps sounded around the room.

This was the Star, the one who had threatened interpol by taking the whole world hostage, public enemy number two (at the moment, Kira took the top spot.)

"What do you-"

"Please don't repeat yourselves. I get bored easily. Now, when L inquires as to what happened here, simply tell him Star did it - he will understand. Now there was something else I've forgotten... oh yes, I only need one witness, don't I? The rest of you are just loose ends that need to be cut." An undignified squeak came from the one named Jane, and laughter echoed around the room.

"Don't worry, I'm just kidding. The other thing... a programmer named M2 has been getting quite the reputation blow - it seems he was the one who made the security at interpol, which I bypassed so easily. Really, they're scapegoating him. Could you be really kind and tell them to lay off of it? His program was the best I've ever hacked, and he deserves to be recognised for that fact. And also, tell L that I know about Goggles; other than that, nothing else. Bye." and silence again.

L was not particularly surprised to receive the frantic phone call from the morgue telling him Tsuki's body had vanished. He was not even surprised to hear that Star had taken control of the tannoy at the hospital (it was supposed to be impossible to only use the speakers in one room and not the whole building, but Star had done it somehow) and left them a message. He was, however, quite shocked - although not caught off balance this time, simply needed to revise some predictions - that Star knew about M2's identity as Matt. He honestly believed that Star had no knowledge of his successors, but he had obviously found them despite L's attempts to keep them hidden. He had no ill intentions towards Matt at least, so it was reasonable to assume Star would not do anything to expose his successors if he did make contact.

"Watari, perhaps it is time to take a more active role at Wammy's." Watari was completely shocked, and did not even try to hide it. There was still another hour before the task force would arrive, but still, L did not speak of Wammy's. Ever.

"Ryuzaki, what-"

"-caused this change of heart? I believe that a certain precaution is no longer necessary. I am free to give them more attention."

"That's... that's great news, Ryuzaki! I'll contact Roger right away! ...Ryuzaki?" L had gone right back to staring at the computer while eating cake.


	17. Chapter 17

"_While you're dying I'll be Still Alive_

_And when you're dead I will be Still Alive"_

'Kira can control his victim's actions before death...'

"Star-sama? are you alright?"

'Go away Sol. Kira can control his victim's actions before death... The paper envelope on the subway - if it was just the paper that was special, why bother with the envelope? Unless, of course, something else had been written on the paper - something you didn't want Max Johnson to see...'

"Star-sama, you have been like this for hours now! Please, at least answer me!"

'What could it be? The time of death - certainly, but something else as well; the gaps between the names were too large for only a time to have been written...'

"Star-sama?"

'That's how I know... he must have written actions before their death onto the paper as well. That is how he controls the victim's actions. It must have been how he did it before that, when he manipulated those criminals into performing strange actions...'

"Star-sama, can you even hear me? I'm worried..."

'I wonder, did he just write 'draws a pentagram' or actually have to draw the pentagram on the paper? More to the point, could he draw a face? One he had seen? One the criminal had seen? One neither had seen?'

"If you don't answer, I'll get Teru up here..."

'Now that I think of it, three other criminals died at the same time as those tests... were they the ones that failed? What would they be? One might be just that... possibly drawing L's face - he wouldn't have expected it to work, but it would be nice if it did. Another would be a clearly impossible circumstance - heart attack on the moon in five minutes maybe?'

"I'll see you then, Star-sama."

'No, it's futile to predict what type of impossible move he would use, only that it would clearly be impossible. The other though... He's tested the outer boundary, and something that could work, but he did not expect it to, so the logical choice would be something he expected to work, but wasn't sure of. It wouldn't be a picture - he's done two of those already - so it would be a note. Like the notes he wrote before... a suicide note...'

"Star-sama? Didn't you hear? I'll go get Teru!"

'But that wouldn't be it. Their message before would be incomplete and it wasn't. So something else maybe... a message straight to L from Kira - not coded as a suicide note this time.'

"I really will! I mean it this time!"

'That was about the time when the pattern of Kira's killings changed. Tipping L off that the NPA may have a leak. Maybe it was a taunt about that fact? Whatever it was, L plugged the leak ages ago by getting rid of all those people and the virus I left around the system secures it against any hacker.'

"...Okay, maybe I won't. You know how much I hate other people!"

'Matt was very surprised when his back door suddenly slammed shut in his face. Silly him... he actually believed he had found a proper way in this time. Not even L knew about the connection to his Laptop from Wammy's, because L would not have permitted such a thing with me hanging about - but it allowed me to find the orphanage. That makes three times Matt has betrayed L for Star unknowingly - and he has shown a strong desire to be my successor. That will be useful in the future.'

"I'm going to give you the silent treatment now."

'Getting off track. Where was I - Kira can control a victim's actions before a death. So logically, he could set a death up to look like a suicide - make the victim strangle themselves before dying of a heart attack. Kira would use this to hide any deaths he didn't want made out to be the work of Kira. Deaths which would connect personally to him.'

'I have one thing that L doesn't. A surefire way to tell if a person's death was the work of Kira. The body does not display a core of the dead. Of course, this is also true for corpses over twenty-four hours old. But recent suicides... hm.'

"...look! this is me! Giving you the silent treatment!"

'Of course, I promised L not to access any of his files on the Kira investigation, but I said nothing about ordinary police files. Not just suicides, but all non-natural deaths in the Kanto region. That's a lot of files, but I can easily sort through that in Cyberspace.'

"Are you actually going to talk to me, Star-sama?"

'I only need to visit the corpses Kira may have had a motive in killing. They will mostly be in morgues... I've gotten rather sick of those the past two weeks - but still, I will not have to go there in person. Alright, it's decided. Kira will most likely use that special paper for his own ends - this is the second Kira we are talking about, his ideals of justice are not quite so rigid as the first. I can capitalise on that.'

"Star-sama, if you talk to me in the next five seconds I will give you a cookie."

"Okay Sol."

Sol was extremely taken aback at the way Light's eyes snapped open at the mention of a cookie. 'Do they really mean that much to him?'

"Sol, where's this cookie you promised?"

"Uuh... Star-sama, I didn't really mean-"

"Learn a lesson then, Sol. Don't make empty promises, unless you have absolute certainty that they will never be called out on."

"...Yes, Star-sama. I am sorry."

"I'm in a good mood at the moment. Anyway, I need to change faces again, or L may recognise me as Tsuki." changing faces was something Light did every year or two. It involved a change of wardrobe and a re-dyeing of hair. Sol had met Light when he had been going by the alias 'Leaf'. His hair had been green and he wore a forest-green tunic (also making him look like a girl, it was definitely time to change that). That was the only other alias he had used with Sol, so the cat had a hard time suggesting what to do.

"Pick a colour, Sol. Actually, you'd pick red, wouldn't you? It's your favourite. Red it is then - and this time, I will definitely look like a boy. Four years is a long time to spend as a girl, and I don't plan on doing it again anytime soon."

"Yes, Star-sama."

"I won't! No!"

"But please... please! Just one time? You're so beautiful."

"No! Pervert! I don't want this!"

"Oh you know you do... Stop resisting, Aiko-chan. You want this."

"No I don't - get off me!" Aiko Iriye struggled, and eventually got free. Five metres away, she watched her assailant warily.

"Higuchi-san, I don't want you that way. And after that, I never will. Go die in a hole." She turned and ran away, only stopping to call out

"Oh! And don't think I won't call the police on you, you bastard! My dad's a lawyer; he'll see that you get a nice long time in a cell like you deserve!"

Kyosuke Higuchi watched her go, eyes burning with fury. How dare she turn him down like that! He would make her pay.

"Rem, suicide is a valid cause of death, right?"

There was no answer from the mysterious entity, but Higuchi seemed to have heard one. A crazy grin spread across his face. He watched the red name floating above the girl's head.

"Aiko Iriye... you will soon regret ever going against me... against Kira! Now, let's see, where did I put it?..."

Aiko Iriye - suicide  
Eight o'clock p.m. April fourteenth  
Shoots herself in front of her father.

Light did not like the morgue.

The last time he had been in one, he had his own room, because L was paying. This time, he was forced to go into the rooms where many fresh bodies were kept, ready to be collected by relatives.

He was not scared by the multitude of white sheets that covered all the bodies, or the sterile surroundings that were so clinical, as if death was just one added to a tally. No, he rather liked that - that was how the world should be, with personal feelings pushed to the side for the sake of logic. No, it was something only Light could see that he did not like.

Each body had its own core. Each core had its own voice. And each voice was screaming in his head.

"Save me!"

"Help me, please..."

"Who are you?"

"Who am I?"

Every so often, one of the voices would silence as a soul used up the last of its time on Earth. This, of course, provoked fresh fear from all the rest, and the cacophony of voices rose in a crescendo of pleads and accusations, and 'Who's next?' and 'I don't wanna die!' and 'Mummy, where are you?'

They would not shut up.

There were no secrets between Ghosts, so they all knew he was here. His thought processes worked on a different wavelength to other peoples, so he didn't have to worry about them finding out his thoughts. But he knew all of theirs.

In a sense, he was them. He experienced all their emotions, from the sadness of grieving, the leftover phantom pain of death, the pressure of lost memories, regaining them, the terror of knowing some spirit was watching them (was it God? was it Kira? was it Both?) and the horror as one of their comrades disappeared, and another, and another, and then their life was snuffed out again. He experienced this for everyone simultaneously, the shrieks and wails and 'Oh my God, I don't wanna die!' It was impossible to think in such a situation, and had it not been for his extreme intellect keeping him from sinking into insanity, he would have simply become another soul, forgotten everything about his past life, and existed like this forever.

Light really didn't like morgues.

But every day for a week now he had visited every one in the Kanto region, forcing himself to listen to the collective mind of the dead humans. So far, he had had no luck, but that was not a surprise. He planned to do this for a while longer, until...

Aiko Iriye.

The nineteen year old girl had committed suicide at eight o'clock the previous day. It was now three thirty a.m. Seven hours had passed since her death (just to be sure, Light double checked the file - definitely seven hours. He had not got the date or time wrong - but then again, he had total recall, why would he?)

The corpse did not display a core. It lay there innocently among the crowd of screamers, totally silent.

'Got you, Kira.'

Light began to research Aiko Iriye.

She was of average intelligence, although she was a good linguist. She was almost fluent in English. Her father, Sadao Iriye, was a fairly successful lawyer, but nothing out of the ordinary. Her mother did not work.

Currently, they were at their house, huddled together in a crying lump. Sadao had been in his study when his daughter had knocked on the door, asking to come in in a soft voice. Her father had instantly agreed, sensing with that paternal sense that something had gone very wrong with his child. She had come in. He had turned around to face her, intending to ask in a serious tone what was bothering her.

She was holding a pistol to her head. The shot had rung out through the house, and it was this which had alerted Aiko's mum, who had been cooking a meal and had only glanced at her daughter as she entered their house. She had run upstairs and burst into the study, only to see a puddle of blood, a blankly staring man with tears in the corner of his eyes, and her dead child on the floor amidst a puddle of blood.

Whoever Kira was, he obviously held quite the grudge. Although it was clear that Kira had not done much research into Aiko prior to this, because it could have been so much more effective if only he had set the time of death just a little later to dinnertime, and made her shoot herself in front of her Mother as well.

This lead Light to believe that Kira had specified it as a condition that Sadao witness the suicide. In which case, there was a seventy percent chance that it was Sadao who he held a grudge against, but a married man committing suicide would draw too much attention. The other thirty percent was if Aiko had somehow threatened Kira (with a lawsuit, maybe?) and he had done that as a childish act, as if flaunting his powers.

Actually, now that he thought about it, he would have to revise that estimate upward. The man had not researched the family - and to be honest, it was too sloppily executed to have been planned out at all, and so if he was targeting Sadao he might not have known Aiko's name. Thirty-six percent, maybe - although at this stage there were too many unknowns to give an accurate estimate.

Whichever scenario it was, there was one course of action. He would meet up with Sadao and ask about this, if there was anyone with a motive to do that. Of course, he would need a good alibi, but luckily for him there was a brilliant one already available.

Sometimes it was incredibly convenient that L never revealed his face.


	18. Chapter 18

"_I'm wondering how many are reading this_

_And have recognised it's not a Portal quote_

_I just couldn't find one that fitted the chapter"_

Sadao opened his door at nine the next morning to see a young boy with reddish-auburn hair wearing a red coat.

"Hello."

"Look, I'm sorry, but if you're selling cookies or something I'm not really in the mood, ok?" Sadao had deep circles around his eyes from staying up all night and a few faint tear tracks running down the side of his face.

"Your name is Sadao Iriye. You are a successful lawyer. Last night, your daughter committed suicide by shooting herself in front of you." Sadao took a step back warily.

"H-how do you know that? We haven't told anyone but-"

"-the police? Yes, I know. I will get straight to the point, Sadao. I am L." It was quite interesting to watch the micro-expressions that flitted across the man's face. Shock, confusion, horror, then relief - and then, almost five seconds later, confusion again. Light smirked internally at the man's slow thought processes.

"But, you can't be L. You're six, maybe seven years old? L was working on cases for longer than that."

"L is an ideal, a letter. There is a group of people who are collectively L, all of us genii. I am one of that group and am currently acting as L in this aspect of the Kira case."

"The Kira case?"

"Do not worry. I do not suspect you of being Kira - zero percent. I will need to talk to your wife, but I do not overly suspect her either. No, this is about your daughter - and before you ask, she is not Kira, not unless Kira's killings stop within the next few days."

"Well, I suppose you'd better come in, then."

Light slipped past the man and across the threshold. He made a beeline for the lounge and sat down in his usual position.

Sadao looked at the boy on a cushion sitting on the back of the sofa. It was strange, but him sitting this way seemed to make him more of a presence in the room.  
Just then his wife came in from the kitchen. On seeing the boy, she gave a confused glance towards Sadao.

"Who is he?" The boy made an 'L' shape with two fingers of his right hand.

"I do not suspect you either." He had been staring at Sadao's wife ever since she had entered the room, and only now looked away and back at Sadao.

"While I am here, you may call me Red. It is not my real name, but an alias. It is necessary to operate under one with Kira on the loose."

"I... understand, Red. But can you give me any proof at all that you are L?" Red tilted his head to the side and looked intently at Sadao. Then he began to speak in a mimic of Sadao's voice.

"I wonder what he's going to do now... wait, did he just say that? What? how is this possible? Stop it!" Sadao broke the eye contact and turned away, breathing rate having risen significantly from the moments of panic. His wife came across to comfort him.

"I hope that is proof enough for you. I am able to read people so well that I can speak their thoughts out loud at the same time they think them. It is a useful ability, and instrumental in determining the innocence or guilt of a suspect. Now, down to business. Your wife may sit in, but these questions are for you only. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Good. Let's begin. Aiko Iriye did not commit suicide. She was killed by Kira."

"What? No!"

"Rest assured, I have my ways of knowing how. I require you to realise that not even the police know of this. L recently became aware of a leak in the police force to Kira, and this information must remain secret. It is of vital importance. Therefore, do not mention this to anybody else." Sometimes, when lying, it was best to tell the truth.

"Kira wished this kill not to be attributed to him, therefore he must have had a motive for this, and did not wish for it to be traced back to him. So the question I ask you is this. Have you made any recent enemies, Sadao?"

"...um, no? No, I don't think so - sorry, this is too sudden, can you get back to me on that one?"

"There is no need. You are not lying, and if you had done something recently to make Kira despise you so much he specified your daughter's suicide to occur in front of you, then you would know." At this Sadao's wife broke down in tears. Light ignored her.

"So it was Aiko, then. Eight-five percent certainty at the moment. Where did she work?"

"She had just started a month ago, as a secretary at Yotsuba corp."

"Did she have any enemies?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Any admirers?"

"I don't think so."

"Would she tell you if she had?" Those eyes were staring into his soul. He could not lie.

"...no."

"What time does she usually get home?"

"Seven."

"So she came home late. Was there a reason for that?"

"Sometimes she has to stay at work for a while."

"Thank you, you've been helpful." Light hopped off the sofa and got ready to leave.

"You're leaving? Just like that?" Red gave a secretive smile, and tilted his head.

"Nothing more is of use to me here. The main reason I came was to determine whether either of you were Kira. You are not, and I have new leads for the investigation, which L can follow up back at base. I want to stress again the importance of keeping silent. Kira must not find out, or he may decide to kill us all." Then Red turned and walked out the door, leaving two stunned adults in his wake. He smirked just a little. It was quite hilarious to see his affect on people who he had not met before.  
The trick with the mind reading was actually quite simple - most people would think that way. A person's thoughts were not often put into words, but hearing an approximation of your thoughts being spoken in your voice made your brain immediately jump to the conclusion that they were yours, which created a rather spooky effect.

So... Yotsuba. That would be his next point of call - to research the company, go there, and determine who was Kira. If that did not work, then he would research into Sadao's law firm, but Light could reason that Yotsuba was far more likely to contain Kira at this point. Over ninety percent - but now he had to narrow it down to a person.

'I wonder how L is doing?'

L was currently sifting through the data - specifically, through the stock market. Kira's killings had caused it to plummet, down to seventy percent of its pre-Kira value - Facebook, in particular, was doing abysmally. That was, with the exception of two companies.

One was an internet based shopping site. It sold anything you could think of. Many more people had been using it because it allowed a person to be completely anonymous. It was doing so well because the general public now knew Kira needed a name to kill and were scared he would come for them too if they let their names out anywhere on the internet.

Of course, they had completely the wrong conclusion. This second Kira now needed only a face to kill, like the first Kira had at some point in his reign. Of course, he could discount the possibility that Kira needed a name to kill at all ever, and it was just a trick designed to confuse investigators, but that was ninety-six percent unlikely. Otherwise, Raye Penber would be dead.

The second was Yotsuba corp. They seemed to be doing quite well out of Kira, as he had targeted a few of the leading men in one of their competitor's firms. Quite suspicious...

L brought his thumb to his mouth and began to think.

'Most of Kira's killings happen at weekends. Does that mean this 'second Kira' is also a student? No, I don't think so. That is inconsistent with the types of criminals Kira is killing now. Where before it was just all the people wanted for the worst crimes, now his killings are a means to an end. Apart from that, a student would not have access to the type of information necessary to determine whether or not a businessman was a criminal. The second Kira seems to be concentrating on fraud, as opposed to more serious crimes.'

"Hey Ryuzaki, here's the coffee you asked for."

"Thank you Matsuda." Ten sugar cubes were added to the coffee in order to make it drinkable. L sipped it slowly.

'Kira is using his killings to knock out the competition. So I can conclude this Kira is an adult, active in the business world. So why weekends? It would be easy for a businessman to kill on weekdays, so it can't be a matter of him being unable to do it. He must be unwilling.'

L took another sip of the coffee.

'If he's unwilling, then there must be someone else telling him to kill. Perhaps Kira is acting as a hitman, with orders being given to him on Friday night? Or, of course, it could be Monday, and he puts off the killings to erase suspicion from that. But the second Kira doesn't work that way. He's more sloppy than the first.'

"Everyone, I suggest we investigate Yotsuba."

"Wha? Where did that one come from, Ryuzaki?"

"The way Kira is killing currently benefits them immensely. It is possible Kira may be an investor, or may be being paid by them to act as a hitman of sorts. Matsuda, could you go get another cup of coffee? I'm almost done."

"Uh, sure, Ryuzaki." L went back into deep thought.

'Yotsuba on Fridays - do they have a business meeting? If so, I can get Wedy to bug the place so I can listen in on what they say. The second Kira may be caught that way. But what about the first?'

That, you see, was the true thing that had been bothering L. He was eighty-three percent sure Misa Amane was guilty - at least, he had been. But ever since her confinement had started, she had changed. Now, suspicion was falling steadily, because she wasn't lying when she said she wasn't Kira.

How did she do that? But back to Yotsuba...

His eyes flickered to the computer screen.

'Does Light-kun know about Yotsuba? Should I contact him? I have no way to be able to. Still, I'm assuming too little of him. He will find out soon, if he has not already. Has he already determined who is Kira - has he confronted them? He can't have, or he surely would have contacted me again, to gloat. So that means Light and I are in much the same position. Perhaps we will meet when our two separate investigations clash. They're bound to, if this lead on Yotsuba turns out to be true. They will have taken every precaution not to be overheard if they are discussing Kira, and that will include dismantling security cameras. Light will be forced to send an operative to the scene. Another clone?

Because, you see, L had determined Star's identity through Tsuki. Tsuki, whose DNA (tested while at the morgue) had been the same as the lost son of Soichiro Yagami. But since Tsuki was clearly not the right age to be Light, L had come up with an alternate theory. Tsuki was a clone of Light. The boy who was Star's successor - Star had to be Light. After all, it made sense. If you were going to train a child from birth to take over your position, you would want the person to be as genetically intelligent as possible. And what better way to ensure intelligence than to make the child an exact copy of yourself, one of the most intelligent people on the planet?

'Possibly another clone. It all depends on the danger risk. Star probably does have another successor somewhere in the works - an heir and a spare, just like (A & B, the two failures) Near and Mello. But with Tsuki dead, would he compromise his other heir by sending them into a confrontation with Kira? It's impossible to know at this point.'

"Watari, could you get me a slice of chocolate cake?"

'But if he isn't willing, who would he send? It's pretty well known that Star doesn't have a contact face like Watari. It's not in Light's style to employ someone else to represent him. Most likely he will use a machine to try and spy on Yotsuba. I must tell Wedy to do a thorough bug check on all the places she infiltrates. Maybe if I can find the equipment he uses, something on it might lead me to his location.'

Two hours later, the last of the task force left the building for the day. L was left alone with Watari.

"Have you done what I asked?"

"Yes Ryuzaki." A laptop was placed in front of him, along with some cake. L mentally prepared himself. He had promised himself he would do this. Reaching out one hand, he pressed a button. Instantly the transmission started. There, on the screen, was live video footage of a room with three kids in it.


	19. Chapter 19

"_Oh good. My slow clap processor made it into this thing."_

Matt was bored out of his mind.

Sure, lessons at Wammy's didn't allow you to coast - in fact, they pushed you to the best of your ability and beyond - but he was still bored. Mello was still in a huff about that chocolate ban, and his activities as M2 had been cut to a halt when the link to L's laptop he had forged (with extreme secrecy this time, as opposed to last time) had been forcibly disconnected, and a virus defense set up to prevent him from linking to it again. Either L had found out, or Star did not want him accessing the thing. Given the complexity of the virus (he had obtained a sample for study, and the stupid thing had self-destructed as soon as it figured out it was in captivity, taking all the data on Matt's computer with it) he would have to say Star.

But now L was contacting them.

By 'them', he meant Near, Mello and himself. While Wammy's was a school for genii, the others were not in the same league, and so were not considered candidates for succession to L.

Matt wished they would shut up about that. Really, it was L this and L that, oh, L is the very best and you must try to be like him! But Matt didn't want to be like L. He already had a perfectly brilliant role model and he didn't want to be L's successor. The only reason he didn't simply drop out was Mello.

Matt knew that if Mello thought he wasn't intelligent enough, then he would stop hanging around with him, because that might hurt his own chances. But if Matt ever got second place instead of third, then Mello would hate him. So to keep the boy's friendship, he consistently scored a point lower than Mello on every exam they took (it was harder then it sounded, as he had to look at each question, predict what Mello would do, add up the marks and score one lower on his own test).

He really hoped nobody had picked up on that fact yet; knowing his luck, they had. This contact from L had come completely out of the blue and he could only hope that it was unrelated to the deception he had been running for the past few years. Or his identity as M2.

Right now, it was just him, Near and Mello. Roger had left the room, and they were alone - if you didn't count the laptop that was on standby on one of the desks. Near was sitting in the middle of a train set, pushing the train around with his index finger. Mello was glaring angrily at the boy, but Near didn't really notice. Matt sighed and flipped open his 3DS, loading up one of the hacked ROMs he had put on there. The notes of the Zelda theme sounded incredibly loud in the awkward silence, and he winced slightly as he plugged some earbuds in.

Then the laptop suddenly lit up with a gothic L in the centre of the screen. Mello was immediately in front of it, not wanting to miss anything. Matt just went back to his game - if L wanted him personally for anything, Mello would tell him.

Roll, slash, Roc's cape... Jump attack, shield... Stupid Dark Nuts, with their shield-bypassing attacks... Pegasus boots, dash attack, confusion - and then slash like hell with the sword. Matt liked games, because with his intellect he could tell what all the variables were, and then he would try to get a perfect score. He would already have to redo this part of the game, because Link had been damaged by the Dark Nut's attack, and that would not do. Real life was less interesting because it was impossible to get a perfect score, and there were too many factors out of your control.

"Hey Matt, stop playing that! L wants to talk to you!" Matt snapped the 3DS closed and took the headphones out of his ears. Even he would not be so blatantly disrespectful as to ignore a direct summons from L himself.

"Heya L, what's up?"

"I was wondering if you would like to assist me in the case I have been working on." Mello gasped and looked angrily at Matt.  
Ok, this was bad. If Mello was looking at him like that, then L's request had been worded towards him specifically. And the only reason why that might be, what with him only being in third place, was if L knew about M2 (now that he thought about it, of course he knew about M2, his file contained it as an alias), and was asking for his help as an expert hacker.

...Hang on, that didn't make sense. Star said he was working with L on the Kira case. Why would L come to him when he had the undisputed best hacker in the world on his doorstep?

"I'm sorry, but I can't. I already tried and he wiped all my files, including the coding programs I was working on. It's going to take months to replace them."

Because If L wanted him, then L was investigating Star. And Matt would not betray his idol. Sometimes, it was best to keep a secret by telling the truth.

"That's too bad. But I believe your talents will still be useful. I take it you have had contact with him somehow?"

"Yes." There was no point hiding it, it would just contradict any stories he made later along the line - and also, he was a brilliant hacker. Star was a brilliant hacker. Of course they would have sought each other out. "But that won't work either. Have you seen the virus that's hangin around your computer? There's no way I can even try and get through that - I didn't even know it was possible for a virus to be that complex."

"Did you manage to find out the purpose of the virus?"

"From what I saw of it, it's just an antivirus, designed to keep intruders out. As I say, it was really complex and I didn't manage to examine all the code - it crashed and took my computer with it. So there could be other things." But of course, that wasn't Star's style, and Matt was pretty sure it was just meant to be an antivirus.

...something wasn't adding up.

"Thank you Matt, you have been very helpful. Near, I would like to ask you if..." Matt tuned out and went back to his game. As he resumed playing, a messagebox came up on screen.

'I was listening. Good job. ~*'

Matt had a hard time not laughing.

L was talking to his successor Near. Light was listening to the conversation and generally being bored.

Sure, he had promised not to search out L or hack his laptop again, and also not to access any information L had on the Kira case. But he hadn't promised to stop (what was the expression - hanging around?) Matt, nor any of the others at Wammy's. Really, the genius orphanage was a brilliant place - so much better than other humans. The children here had a high enough intellect that they occasionally said or did things which he couldn't predict, which was both irritating and extremely refreshing.

Thus when L contacted the orphanage, Light did not feel obliged to leave just so he could talk in private. After all, he was here first, so it was L who had (unknowingly) broken the rules of their little game.

L was obviously trying hard to deduce his motive for abandoning the investigation like that, as well as whether he truly had abandoned it or was just spying. Hopefully, he would deduce the right answer - the virus L's laptop now contained would serve to protect him from any unwanted hacking attempts now that Star wasn't there to keep an eye on the system. L had, of course, picked up on this, and was probably working out whether it was a double bluff, to make him think Star had gone. Really, it didn't concern him all that much.

But it was nice to finally see L confront Matt as M2.

Perhaps a little background information was in order at this point. Matt had been ten when he decided he didn't want to be L. He had taken up hacking, in an attempt to become more like his new idol, Star. After a year of low-key stuff,during which he discovered that his genius mind worked brilliantly with hacking - it was just like a game, a very difficult game - he began to make a name for himself, infiltrating public systems and leaving tantalising clues to his next attempt, using M2 as his alias.

Very bad choice of alias, given the fact that L had just finished the LABB cases and was therefore extremely paranoid. M was the thirteenth letter of the alphabet. The second letter of the alphabet was B.

M2 could conceivably read B.B.

It is needless to say that this was a total coincidence, but L's genius mind came up with this false positive almost immediately. Coupled with the fact that the hacking attempts seemed to be based around Winchester, England, and L immediately jumped to the wrong conclusion.

Matt lasted two weeks against L. That alone was a testament to the boy's skill, because had needed to employ seven convicted hackers to finally catch the boy - Star was nowhere to be found at that time, having ceased his activities three months ago for no explicable reason. In the end, it had all turned out to be a misunderstanding, even if L had been nearly spot on - after all, he knew the hacker was an ex-Wammy's. Matt had been let off with a warning not to be so obvious and the case file had been deleted. L had made no mention of anything to do with it since then, probably hoping that Star had not noticed the case, due to his mysterious disappearance (of course Light had, and it was how he found out about Wammy's).

It was actually this which Light had believed diverted Light's attention from the Manipulator case which had been happening in London at the exact same time. He had never really understood why L had been so frantic in pursuing Matt, aside from the location of M2's hacking attempts. Of course, he knew now of the imagined connection to B, which explained a lot.

But back to the Kira case. L and Near were talking intently through the laptop, bouncing theories off of each other. He felt a strange longing to join in the conversation, but shook it off quickly - it was irrational to reveal his presence by doing such a thing. Instead he merely listened, and attempted to glean information on how the investigation was going.

They knew about Yotsuba.

When Light discovered how they knew, thanks to a question by Mello, he became incredibly annoyed with himself. The stock market? He should have checked that. His dissociation from humanity tended to result in oversights like this, but he was trying to correct this flaw in his behaviour. Evidently, he had not managed it. The reminder of his flaws was like a thorn in his side. Even worse was the fact that he had spent a week in the morgues (he hated morgues) when a much easier solution was available.

He really did need to stop overestimating Kira so much, as it was causing him to not bother checking the obvious things.

Light left the room, using Matt's 3DS as a wifi link to Cyberspace and going back to Japan. He did not like the fact that L had caught up with him so easily with so little effort, and he decided to actively do something about it.

The 'I am L' thing had worked well last time, but it would not do to introduce himself as such now. He would need an alternate alias, although he could still use the name Red.

Hugging one of his stuffed toys to his chest, he whispered a name into the silence of his room.

"Sol, I know you're there."

It took five seconds for the spirit to respond - a sign that he felt guilty about the argument from a few days ago. Light decided that he had left Sol in suspense long enough.

"I'm not angry, Sol-kun." Sol radiated a wave of surprise and happiness at the endearment, having spent enough time in Japan to know that it implied friendship between two people.

"Thank you, Star-sama." Of course, he knew not to overstep his boundaries.

"Sol, we're going to be going into danger again. I need you by my side at all times - but I know how you hate extended stays of time without a body, so as far as the rest of the world is concerned, Red will have a pet."

"What type of animal do you require, Star-sama?"

"A bird of some sort - more agile than a land based animal. Also, try to take care of the body this time." Sol often killed the animals he possessed for extended lengths of time, simply because he forgot to eat or drink, because he didn't experience needs like hunger or thirst. Light didn't either, and to be honest had forgotten what they felt like. It took a thorough scan of his mental state to even pick up when he was hungry, which he had learnt to do because his brain worked best when properly fed.

"Yes, Star-sama."

Light would send one of the Cult out to get bird food - and a cage, because there would be times when Sol would be needed for something else, and he didn't want a terrified avian on the loose.

That settled, he clutched the toy frog closer to his chest as he thought. What to do... how exactly to go about it...

A plan clicked into place. A couple of variables would have to be worked out more exactly, but...

"L, you're not going to find Kira before I do."


	20. Chapter 20

"_Look at you, soaring through the air like an eagle..._

_...piloting a blimp."_

"Hello, my name is Teru Mikami."

"Mikami-san, please come in." Mikami stood at the reception desk at the Yotsuba corporation, feeling extremely anxious. He took a deep breath. He would not fail the Chosen One.

"I have come as a representative of my company. I work in a law firm as a prosecutor." The receptionist's eyes instantly became guarded. She began to speak warily, giving a speech that was obviously memorised word for word.

"I'm afraid you'll have to contact Yotsuba's lawyers if your client has any legal issues with-"

"No, you misunderstand. I am not against Yotsuba. I come with... a business proposition, you might say. I require the services of the Yotsuba group." The receptionist, who had previously been closed off, smiled.

"Of course. Yotsuba is always happy to help paying customers." There it was - if you don't have money, we're not helping you. Luckily, Mikami had prepared for this. He placed a suitcase on the table and opened it. Inside were stacks of yen bills - too many to count. The receptionist's eyes went wide, and she managed to stutter out a reply.

"Y-yes, of course. Wait one moment." She hastily picked up the phone and began to talk in a hushed whisper.

"Reiji-sama, I've got someone here... no, but he's got... ok, right. Got it." She put down the phone and smiled at Mikami.

"I'm so sorry about that. I'm new here, so I'm not clear on some protocols."

"You're new?" came a lilting voice from in front of the reception desk. The receptionist looked down, and was startled to find a red-haired boy, six or seven years old, staring up at her with a feathered hat on his head. When had he got there?

"Um, excuse me, but you are...?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry for not introducing him. This is my adopted son and heir to my company, Red." Mikami leaned in close and whispered "He's always wanted to look around a business. He's a bit quirky, if you get what I mean, but very intelligent." He looked almost guilty as he said this, as if he was committing an act of sacrilege.  
The receptionist looked back at Red. He smiled up at her, a brilliant, adorable smile that would have melted the coldest of hearts.

"Yes, I'm new. I just started last week. My job is very important, because I help sort out all the problems of all the people coming here." Red nodded.

"Can I have a look around?" he asked excitedly. "I've always wanted to see a real business. No offense dad, but yours isn't that cool. Anyway, this place is huge! Can I see some other stuff? Pleeeeease?" Mikami sighed and put a hand on the boy's shoulder to silence him - or rather, he almost did, but stopped short at the last moment.

"I'm sorry, but if it's not too much trouble, can I get somebody to watch him while I discuss why I'm here? I warn you, he's very inquisitive and can be a handful at times, which is why I don't want him left alone. He might wander off."

"Sure, of course! I'll get one of the secretaries to watch him. You two go on up in the lift, and I'll phone ahead. Someone will be waiting to take care of little Red-kun." Mikami nodded at this and walked towards the elevator indicated, with Red tailing behind him.

...was it her imagination, or did Red's hat just move? Nah, must've been her imagination.

Once in the lift, the innocent expression disappeared from Red's face. He reached up and took off the hat he was wearing, which suddenly squawked indignantly and began to struggle. Then it went silent again, at the same time Red's expression became one of utter boredom.

"There are no cameras in the lift, Teru-kun. We are not being monitored."

Instantly Mikami bowed his head.

"I am so sorry, Lord, for demeaning you, I am not worthy, I-"

"Save that for later. Do not forget, you have a task to carry out, in the name of the All and Only."

"Yes, Lord."

The lift door pinged open and Red put his hat (it was feathery and warm) back on his head. He followed Teru out into the hallway of the nineteenth floor, where a woman was waiting for them.

"Teru-san, I have been instructed to show you to the office of Namikawa Reiji, however he is in a meeting at the moment. If your business is not urgent, please could you wait until he has finished? Refreshments will, of course, be provided free of charge. In the meantime, why don't we find somebody to take care of Red-kun?" Teru looked at Red, who tilted his head to the side, shrugged, and said

"Yep, that sounds good. What's this meeting? Is it a really super-secret one?" The receptionist smiled.

"No, on Thursdays we don't have any 'super-secret meetings', it's just that Reji-sama often has meetings with clients all week. But," she leaned in conspiratorially, "There is a super-secret meeting going on tomorrow, between all the top people. Nobody knows what goes on in there."

Red's eyes went wide. "Do you think they're doing really super secret stuff, like, I dunno, working for the CIA or the FBI or L? That would be soooo cool!" The receptionist hesitated, then ruffled Red's hair.

"Nobody knows, but they could be. Now let's get your father seated down with a nice cup of coffee, and then maybe you and I can go investigate?"

"Can we? Pleeeease?"

"Of course we can. Mikami-san, this is Reiji-sama's office. Please make yourself welcome. I'll take good care of your son. Come on Red-kun, let's go do some super-secret detective work."

"Yeah! Just like L!"

"Yes... just like L."

It was actually very close to laughable, Light reasoned, the fact that the receptionist so totally believed his act. In any case, he was exactly where he wanted to be - he now had pretty much free rein inside the Yotsuba building, and and so-called 'suspicious activity' would be shrugged off as the result of a young inquisitive mind. The alibi was watertight.

Not airtight, of course, but then he didn't want it to be. Uncertainty was half the fun, after all, plus his plan relied on Yotsuba getting suspicious of someone infiltrating their organisation. However, if he had predicted L's actions accurately enough, that 'someone' might end up having to be him. Thus the slightly suspicious sneaking around - plus, it was an easy way of bugging the place.

"Hey, what does this do?" he asked, pointing to one of the machines in the corner of the office. The receptionist looked at it.

"Oh, that's a shredder. We use them to get rid of old documents that we don't want used again."

"So super-secret stuff, huh?"

"Yep. Do you want to try it out?"

"Umm, Ok! How does it work, anyway?"

"You just press this button." -Beep- "and it's ready to shred. Then you take the document and put it in through this slot..." -Click, Whirr- "and out it comes, nicely shredded."

"Cool! Can I have a try?"

"Sure."

-Beep, Click, Whirr-

"Wow! So cool! How does it do that, anyway? ..."

"Now, don't try and stick your hand through the slot, I don't want you getting hurt."

"Aww... Okay then. What's next, secretary-san?"

"Do you want to look at one of our meeting rooms? They've got really comfy chairs which you can spin round in!"

"Yep! You're really cool, secretary-san, way cooler than my dad."

"Thank you, Red-kun."

"Hey, look! It's another shredder-y thing! Can we-"

"-Yes, Red-kun, you can try this one out too."

An hour later, Light left Yotsuba with his faithful servant Mikami in tow. The man had been laying out the groundwork for some business deal - Light had no real interest in what it was, as it would be of no relevance to his plan - and Red had been doing 'detective work' all around Yotsuba. Interestingly, he had detected a slight hesitation every time he brought up the name 'L'. Perhaps the receptionist had some knowledge that Kira was related to Yotsuba? To test the theory, he had brought up Aiko Iriye (though not by name) in conversation.

"Hey, didn't receptionist-san say she was new? Do they always put new people in reception?"

"No... the previous receptionist... let's just say she resigned." From life, maybe.

"Sooo... are you saying you don't know why she resigned? So it's a mystery, right?"

"Uh, I suppose so..."

"Cool! I'll solve it, no problem. Umm, did she have any enemies at Yotsuba? Like, people who would make her want to resign?"

-wince-

"No... look, Red-kun, why don't we go investigate something else? Like the shredders. I can show you every single shredder in the whole building if you want?"

"Oh wow... Please?"

Possibly the most interesting point about that conversation was the fact that she reacted most strongly not to the remainder of the suicide, but to the question of enemies. She knew something, there was no doubt about that. She had guessed that Yotsuba and Kira were linked, and from there pieced together the truth behind the suicide - it was murder, and she probably had a good idea of who had committed it, too. But she wasn't going to the police - well, if Kira had seen her face, she'd be way too scared to, wouldn't she?

That woman could be an invaluable asset if L managed to find her. Light didn't really care about that, as he had already laid the groundwork for his plan. The only thing left to do now was wait until tomorrow, when the meeting took place - in fact, maybe he could even give L a hint.

Red held his arm up to his head. The hat he had been wearing unfolded its wings and hopped onto his shirt sleeve, revealing itself to be a bird. A raven specifically - Sol had rather liked the feather colours.

'Star-sama, is it okay to continue this way? This is much more comfortable than staying in an object.' Light knew quite well the oppressive cold of being a bodiless spirit, and did not comment on Sol's preference of a body.

'Yes, Sol. However, for now I require you to run me an errand for me. It's nothing strenuous like last time, just letter delivery. I promised not to go anywhere near L's investigation, and I fully intend to keep that promise, but that doesn't stop me communicating entirely. I just need to use... less conventional means.'

'I understand, Star-sama.'

They arrived back at the cult, Light throwing a hood over his head to hide his face from the Cult. Mikami opened the door, and stepped aside for Light to walk in.  
Members of the Cult of Stars lined the hallways, heads bowed. They had probably been waiting half an hour or more for his return, kneeling in that position just to be near their Chosen One. Light paid them little heed - if they wanted to attribute his powers to the divine and worship him because of it, then he wouldn't stop them, and would simply use that as another way to manipulate. He walked up the corridor surrounded by his guard of honour, and then vanished up the stairs. That night, many of the cult considered themselves blessed to have been in the presence of the All and Only, and a couple of new initiates devoted their life in service of the cult. Not that Light cared.

Dear L,

Hello! I see you have noticed the absence of my text files. Or at least, I predict you have. I have not accessed your computer at all since Chicago, so I wouldn't know for sure.  
Knowing you, you have already found this, but just in case you haven't, then I'll tell you now: Kira and Yotsuba corp. are linked, quite closely. Also, something subtler which you won't have been able to pick up on yet - Aiko Iriye, former receptionist, committed suicide a few days ago. Probably the work of Kira, and the new receptionist knows something about it.  
By the way, the raven is called Sol. Mogi, I'm afraid Santa doesn't exist - Tsuki just used Sol to play a mind game with you. Don't try to trace Sol - or I might stop communicating with you. If you want to answer this letter, don't bother - I'm not falling for that. One way communication only, I'm afraid.  
I wish you well, and I'm still going to find Kira before you. Try and guess what my plan is.  
~*

Light folded up the letter and put it in the envelope, before tying it to Sol's leg. The sun was setting over Tokyo, but because L had found out about Yotsuba, it was almost guaranteed that the investigation team would still be at headquarters, sifting through new information. He wondered what their reactions would be.

'Best way is to find out, I suppose. Go, Sol.'

The raven flew off into the evening sky, carrying the message.

-Tap-

-Tap, tap-

-Tap, tap, tap-

"What is that noise?" asked Mogi. "It's been going on for the last minute! Is it you, Ryuzaki?" He wouldn't have been surprised if it was, but Ryuzaki shook his head.

"Where is it coming from, then?"

-Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap-

"Argh! It's so annoying!" Mogi got up and started searching around the room, looking for the source of the mysterious ticking - sorry, tapping noise.

L wondered briefly is the task force would start bursting into song, and if so he would be forced to reveal his real name.

'I'm getting delusional from lack of sugar.' This was next confirmed when his ears pinpointed the source of the noise and saw it was a bird, tapping on the window with a letter tied to its leg.

'Definitely delusional. At least it's not an owl.' He blinked away the image.

It stayed there, tapping on the window.

"Mogi-san, I believe that a raven is tapping on the window." Mogi looked around, and saw it too. So he wasn't going delusional then - but what could possibly in the letter to make it be delivered like this? More to the point, how much training had that bird been given to make it able to deliver letters to the right houses?

Mogi opened the window, and the raven hopped in and held out its leg. Slightly startled, he detached the letter and began to read it. The bird hopped back out the window and flew off.

"Oh, so that's how he did it... I feel really silly now." Mogi was still scanning the letter. "Hey Ryuzaki, it's from Star. You know, that guy Tsuki knew? He sent it to you, and he knows about Yotsuba." L motioned for the letter to be handed over, and skimmed it quickly. Either Light was doing this as part of an elaborate plot, he wanted to double-bluff L off the scent, or he really wasn't infiltrating their system. Also, the possible lead on Aiko would have to be followed up. He scrunched up the letter and threw it into the bin.

"Hey Ryuzaki, don't do that! That letter could have DNA evidence that would tell us who Star really is! I thought you said you wanted to find him?"

'Exactly.' L thought moodily. The choice of something which would no doubt contain DNA was a taunt, because L already knew who Star was - and he couldn't risk Soichiro finding out, it would compromise the investigation. Therefore he was forced into being an accomplice to Star's plan (even if only a little). It was as if Light was mocking him, saying: 'So you know who I am. What are you gonna do about it?' The answer of course, was nothing, and L knew Light knew L knew that. It was frustrating to say the least.

"Everyone, Star gave us a new lead. Aiko Iriye may have been killed by Kira." However annoying Star could be, he wouldn't tell an outright lie, and he had also never done anything to deliberately hamper the investigation. Maybe it was against the rules of this game he was playing. Whatever it was, L was over ninety percent sure that Aiko would be a useful lead.


	21. Chapter 21

"_You're not just a moron._

_You were DESIGNED to be a moron."_

The next day rolled around soon enough, and Mikami and Red entered the Yotsuba building on Friday afternoon, ready to lay the next stage of the groundwork.

Namikawa Reiji was once again in a meeting - and this time, it was the all important one. Light suspected from the times of the killings that they were decided at this meeting, which meant one of the eight people that were in it was Kira.

So naturally, he was paying absolutely no attention to the meeting - he had bugged the room anyway, and he could look over the footage later - in order to question the secretary about Aiko again, much more subtly this time. At least he had been.

Matsuda running up the stairs full pelt and then dashing past the entrance to the room he was in did catch his attention rather well. Red ended the conversation with the secretary and asked her if she had any cookies, at which point she told him to wait here while she got a whole box from the shop next door. That was the second time in a very short while that that excuse had worked - he needed to note it down in his repository of 'Ways to Manipulate adults'.

Back to Matsuda. Red followed him all the way to the entrance to the Yotsuba meeting, at which point he was treated to the sight of a full grown man spying through the keyhole like a little child. Well, this was unexpected.

Had L sent Matsuda here as a means to hear the conversation? Perhaps he had overestimated the man's morals - after all, if he was caught, it would mean near certain death by Kira. But that was unlikely. Matsuda had probably come here by himself, and was in fact acting without L's permission.

Insubordinate subordinates could be such a pain sometimes (not that Light needed to deal with them, Teru Mikami was absolutely devoted to him and would jump off a cliff if Light asked him to). So, the dilemma - would it be breaking the rules of the game to give Matsuda a little shove in the back, sending him sprawling into the room? Matsuda wouldn't know it was him, of course, but it still felt like cheating. However, it would be incredibly beneficial to the success of his plan if Yotsuba got more paranoid about what they were doing with Kira.

To push, or not to push? That is the question...

Matsuda leaned a little too hard on the door in front of him, which suddenly gave way. He fell inwards, and the faint murmur of voices Light could hear from his position suddenly stopped.

Well, apparently fate had decided it for him. He didn't even need to break any rules; Matsuda had done it all on his own. Sometime he would really need to stop overestimating other people.

Matsuda attempted to bluff his way out of the situation by calling himself the manager of Misa Amane - interesting, they still had a tail on her, did they? and Light slipped back into the shadows, returning to the room the secretary had told him to stay in. So... Matsuda was probably going to die in the next few days. Either that or he would fake his death well enough to avoid it. Light was hoping for the second option, because watching somebody fake their death when you were in on what was happening was utterly hilarious. Of course, it would also prove an excellent opportunity to test his Red-eye theory.

Saturday night saw Taro Matsui fall off a building to his death during a party. Red had obviously not been invited, but he was able to watch in spirit form as the man plummeted off the balcony and crashed into the ground - or rather, as he bounced off a mattress and ended up perfectly fine on one of the lower floors.

Sunday saw Touta Matsuda die of a sudden inexplicable heart attack. Light checked the corpse and found no core. L's plan hadn't worked. Not that Light had been expecting it to have, because if Kira really did have the Red-eye power, then he would have known both the man's real name and his remaining lifespan (which would have been longer than one day) so he would have known the death was fake.

An interesting fact that he realised was that the lifespan a Red-eye user sees would have to be the person's natural lifespan, and that Kira's power killed somebody before their lifespan ended - or maybe it set a new date for them. He knew this because otherwise Kira's actions would otherwise have already been factored into the model of the universe that determined when a person's lifespan was. Light could just about accept that such a thing existed, but it would cause an invalidation of the system if Kira used the mysterious paper to kill someone who was not destined to die - with any other murder attempt, there would be some way for it to fail, but Kira's killing method was infallible, because if there was any way that Kira would not have to kill his victims, they would have seen it by now.

It was like the saying 'What happens when an irresistible force meets an immovable object?' Kira's killing power was absolute, and the lifespans of people would be set in stone (else they wouldn't exist, would they?) so they were immovable. If the two interfered somehow with each other, it would be a contradiction that would invalidate the universe in general.

So logically, Kira's method of killing cut short a person's remaining life, and also cut short their twenty four hours of death. Maybe it completely obliterated their soul, or maybe it was just an express ticket to the afterlife. Maybe there was no afterlife - Light hadn't really given it much thought as he had no way to die, even if he wanted to - he was already 'dead'.

Or was he? If Kira looked at him with the Redeye power, what would his lifespan be? Would they see numbers counting down until a date in the future when he would truly pass on? Would they see minus numbers, counting up from his date of death twelve years ago? Would they see no numbers at all?

But enough philosophy. Light had already worked out that if a person died before Kira killed them, then it was a natural death. That means the lifespan would have showed the death date as before Kira's killing date. Kira hadn't noticed this at with the two people he had killed after Sakura TV?

So that meant either Kira was stupid (he was not.) or the numbers were not easy to read, and required some working out. Logically, it made sense - why should they be in human format if this was a constant of the universe? From this, he could tell that Beyond Birthday had had the Redeye power for a long time, as he was accomplished at determining when a person would die (Light knew this from recalling the interview). Maybe since birth - it would explain why he had not become a Kira, if he didn't have access to the mysterious paper.

Monday came, then Tuesday, then Wednesday. Light noted with humour that on Thursday a woman infiltrated the Yotsuba building and installed cameras in the meeting room. He ran a search on her face and found nothing on the internet but ghost data, which revealed that she was working for L. He stopped the search once he had confirmed this, because going any further might count as cheating.

Thursday evening, and Mikami and Red returned to Yotsuba. This time, they were immediately escorted to Reiji, who was waiting for them.

"I must confess," began Mikami "that I have not been entirely forthcoming to you about my true intentions. While I have said before that it is only a business deal that I wish to discuss, I now feel confident to tell you what I really want. I wish to employ the services of Kira."

Reiji smiled, giving nothing away. "And why, might I ask, would you come to us? Yotsuba and Kira are two completely separate organisations."

"I do not wish for this charade to continue any longer. I know that Yotsuba is in some way connected to Kira. Either he is using your company to make a profit by investing in Yotsuba shares, or he is a person working for this company. Either way, I don't mind. I don't need or want to know specifics."

"Assuming we did have a means by which Kira would be contacted, why would you come to us? Kira only kills criminals, after all, and asking him to kill an innocent makes you one."

"I have taken steps to prevent Kira from knowing my face. Also, the person I wish dead is a murderer, so there is no problem there."

"But surely if it was a murderer you would simply have to post the name and face of the criminal on one of Kira's fansites?"

"You and I both know those don't work. Anyway, I don't know the person's name or face. It is Yotsuba's job to find that out, and then forward the information to Kira, along with a kill order."

"And what makes you think we will comply with your wish?"

"I will pay you 800 million yen." The suitcase was opened again. "Cash in hand." Reiji took a yen bill out of the case and held it up to the light, examining it. It wasn't fake.

Well of course it wasn't. When you had the ability to 'talk' to machines, it was easy to 'persuade' the cashpoint to print out money for you.

"I see. I'm listening."

"The person I wish dead murdered the daughter of one of my colleagues. My friend's name is Sadao Iriye, his daughter is Aiko. Since the murder he has been a shell of himself, and I want revenge on the person that hurt him so badly."

An odd request, but the money spoke for itself.

"If you do not know the name of the murderer, why not simply leave it to the police to find out who did it?"

"The murder is believed to be a suicide, so the police aren't investigating. I've tried talking to them, but Sadao doesn't want any fuss made about this. He shoots down any attempt to open a case. That's why I want you to be discreet about this. Find out who it was that killed Aiko Iriye, and give their name and face to Kira."

"You would have to realise that their death would not be reported in the news, so there is no way you could confirm whether or not the deed had been done."

"I know. I don't care that the killer is never revealed. I just want them dead. Of course, you would have to prove to me that the person you killed did actually murder Aiko, or you could just set up a phony."

"Well... give me time to think on your proposition. Can you come back tomorrow, at the same time? I must discuss this with the other members of the executive board."

"Of course." Mikami stood up and bowed, then quickly left.

Red was waiting for him at the end of the corridor.

"So, it went according to plan?"

"Yes, Lord."

"Good. Tomorrow, we will find out Kira's true identity."

"Lord, if I may ask a question? How-"

"Don't question me, Teru-kun. Be secure in the knowledge that if you follow my orders, then you will be safe and Kira will be brought to justice."

"Of course, Lord. I offer my humble apologies for daring to question your divine plan."

"Good. Let's go, Teru-kun."

The next day, they arrived at Yotsuba and were let in without even an escort. This had been the reason for the preliminary meetings - they would no longer need anyone to watch over them, because they knew their way around the building. That, and Red was now expected to be at Mikami's side, so nobody questioned why he had brought the child to work.

Of course, there had been secondary reasons, including bugging the building. Actually, it had been interesting and amusing to see what documents Yotsuba shredded - paperwork which would incriminate them of so many charges they would no longer be able to carry on trading was quite fun to look through, and it was why Red had installed all the shredders at Yotsuba with a camera. The bugs in the meeting room had just been to make sure that L had actually bugged it himself, otherwise his plan wouldn't work as well.

When they arrived at Reiji's office - empty, the man was meeting with the rest of the Yotsuba executive board - Light instructed Mikami in the final phase of his plan.  
"Find a place to hide. When you are sure nobody will see you, leave the building - the fire escape at the side is now unlocked, and the alarm will not go off. Make your own way back, and I will meet you there."

"But Lord, what about-"

"I will be perfectly safe. I have tested this before. But if you stay, there is a very large chance that you will die. So go now, Teru-kun."

"As you wish, Lord." Mikami bowed low and left.

And Red sat down to wait. In half an hour, somebody would enter this room, and the endgame would start.

'So, I wonder, who will it be? Not Reiji, I'm ninety-eight percent sure of that. But, it could be any of the others. Nothing was given away by them at the last meeting. I've researched all of them, just in case. My plan has seven different variations, but all of them lead to the same basic ending.'

-Tick, tick, tick-

The clock showed just a few more minutes to go.

'Because the person who will come through that door... no matter who they are... I will know...'

One minute.

'I'll know one hundred percent...'

Thirty seconds.

'They will be Kira.'

Ten seconds.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

The door burst open.


	22. Chapter 22

"_You've got your short sad life left_

_That's what I'm counting on"_

It was a solemn mood in task force headquarters. What had once been five, was now down to two. Soichiro and Mogi were the only ones left. Ukita had died at Sakura TV. Aizawa had resigned in shame after being forced to choose between L and Interpol. Matsuda...

Maybe his loss had been the hardest to face. The young rookie had such an exciting life ahead of him, gleaming with prospects. And then one little mistake, a little trip and fall, and it was all gone. No matter what they had done, Kira hadn't been fooled. What possible hope could they have?

Things were looking bleak.

Nevertheless, they were determined to see this through. It was why Soichiro and Mogi were peering over L's shoulder, looking at a live feed from the cameras in the Yotsuba meeting room.

The meeting proved beyond a doubt that Yotsuba corp. had at least a strong connection with Kira. They were discussing who they wanted dead, for heaven's sake!

"There is a ninety-six percent chance that one of the board members is themselves Kira."

"Shut up Ryuzaki!" Soichiro's temper was running high.

"No need for such a temper."

Now, the meeting was almost over. At least, until Namikawa Reiji stood up.

"I would like to announce something. I have been contacted by a certain person who wants to employ the services of our Kira. I would like your opinions."

Murmurs broke out in the conference room.

"How do they know? We should kill them now!" There were quite a few sounds of agreement, but Reiji silenced them. "He has offered to pay Yotsuba the sum of 500 million Yen if we do what he requests. All he wants is a little detective work and one kira killing. I'd say it's worth it for the large amount."

"Who is this person?"

"He goes by the name of Teru Mikami." L motioned for his laptop, which was handed to him by Mogi. He began to type furiously, not taking his eyes of the meeting.

"What does he look like? Do we have a picture of him?"

"Unfortunately, we don't. Mikami-san has taken measures to delete every single picture of himself from the internet. I believe this is for the sole reason to prevent Kira from learning his face and name."

"Idiot. We have CCTV don't we?"

"No. Three weeks ago we removed all the cameras - even we don't have any pictures of him."

"So you're saying if we don't do what he wants, then we have nothing to stop him from going and telling L about us?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

L stared blankly at the laptop. It was true - there was absolutely no record of Mikami's face anywhere on the internet. Plenty of references to his name, yes, but no face. At all. Even the secret databases L wasn't even supposed to have access to came up totally blank on the face front. It was as if... no, that was exactly what it was.

'So, Light-kun, you've made a move.'

"Who is this person he wants dead anyway?" Shido Mingo, director of financial planning, asked. "And why not just hire a common hitman?"

"That's the problem. Mikami-san doesn't know who it is. As for why he chose Kira, I'm not sure, but I believe it to be something to do with the symbolism. The man he wants dead is a criminal in himself, so Kira's actions might be seen as justice."

"How can he want to kill someone if he doesn't know who they are?"

"The daughter of one of his close friends at the law office where he works was murdered, and he wants the murderer killed."

Mogi suddenly gasped. "Wait, didn't Sadao-"

"Yes." responded L. "It's highly possible that this is referring to that." 'Light-kun, what are you playing at?'

"The girl's name was Aiko Iriye. She actually worked for us, can you believe it? That's probably how he found out that Kira worked for us too. He wasn't investigating Kira, he was investigating Aiko's death and happened to stumble across Kira."

"But how can we be sure nobody else will do the same thing?"

"We can't, but it is highly unlikely. Aiko's death was reported as suicide, so the police aren't even investigating."

"Wait!" Suguru Shimura suddenly spoke. "Aiko Iriye? The old receptionist? Somebody else was asking about her."

Silence greeted his statement, until Reiji spoke up again.

"What do you mean?"

"Some guy named Mochi. Questioned the new receptionist on it, but I didn't think much of it until now."

"Great, now he's investigating on his own. It's obvious that this Mochi guy and Mikami are connected, so what are we going to do?"

"I say we find out who the killer is, and then Kira can kill him. Problem solved."

L breathed out slowly as he realised Light's plan. Without looking away from the conversation, he spoke again, explaining.

"Teru Mikami is an agent of Star. He sent us that letter to manipulate us into going along with his plan, and we fell for it."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Mikami's information contained no picture anywhere. The only people with the skills and resources to do that are Star and myself. Also, Mikami is a member of a religious cult, calling itself the Cult of Stars. I'm not sure if it's fictitious or it actually exists with Mikami as a member, but Star definitely meant for us to see it. It wouldn't mean anything to Yotsuba, but here he's identifying himself."

"In that case, what the hell is he doing?"

"Kira himself killed Aiko. I'm ninety-seven percent sure of that now, though I have no idea how Star found out. This means that when Yotsuba search their own organisation for people with a motive, they'll find Kira's true identity. Kira won't be able to let that happen."

"So he'll have to act to either kill Mikami or persuade Yotsuba to not accept his deal."

"Yes. We'll be able to watch for any signs of suspicious activity. Remember, the rest of Yotsuba have no idea that Aiko's death was Kira's doing, so they won't think it particularly odd if one person opposes this. But we will."

Back on screen, a debate was raging. Well not so much raging as dying down - most were in favour, with Eiichi Takahashi and Kyosuke Higuchi being the exceptions. Eventually Takeshi Ooi banged his hand on the table for silence.

"I see we'll have to settle this like little children. Hands up who's in favour." Six hands went up. "It's decided then. Reiji, when you next meet Mikami-san, tell him we accept his offer."

"I will. I'll go now, in fact. He's waiting right inside my office."

"No. I'll tell him." Higuchi stood up, much to the surprise of the other members. He quickly exited the room, almost slamming the door behind himself on the way out.

"What was that all about?" whispered Masahiko Kida to Shimura, who shrugged.

"Okay, does anyone have anything else they want to say? No? Then the meeting is adjourned." Ooi sat down and leaned back in his chair, watching the other people file out.

"So, does this mean that Kyosuke Higuchi is Kira?" Asked Mogi. L nodded.

"It's about seventy percent at the moment. But something else is bothering me..."

"What? We found out Kira's identity, Ryuzaki!"

"We didn't. This is all Star's doing. In order for Star to find out Kira's identity, he would also have to have cameras installed. But our cameras didn't pick up on him installing them... it's possible that he fed our cameras a loop, but more likely that he already had them installed. Either way, he knows we've got cameras there."

"What difference does it make?"

"Star did that little show for our benefit. Or maybe that's what he wants us to think... but he wouldn't give away his whole plan like this, it's not his style."

"His style?"

"Star is an expert manipulator. He never reveals his full plan to anybody else, just parts of it, in order to manipulate people into doing what he wants. Which begs the question - what is his full plan?"

"Look Ryuzaki, I think you might be reading a bit too much into this."

"No. This has happened before. The reality is, we won't be able to discern the rest of his plan if he doesn't want us to. But why would he not want to get Kira caught faster - easy, it's all a game to him. But this part... he's all but told us Kira's true identity. What does he think we'll do with that information?"

"Arrest him, of course!" sad Soichiro firmly.

"But before that, we'll have to prove it is him. Star could be misdirecting us again, so we'll have to make absolutely certain that Higuchi is Kira. Is that what he wants us to do?" L sighed and began to eat a cookie. "The truth is, there's no reason I can find why Star would want us to prove to him that Kira is Kira, because he already knows."

"How could he know already?"

"He sent Mikami in to do a deal, The cameras allowed him to hear what was going on at the meeting, and he knew the next person to enter Mikami's room would be Kira. Of course, that would probably result in Mikami's death, but he would have time to take a photo and forward it. And that's just the obvious part of the plan."

"But how would that make sure that the person was Kira?"

"Mikami's death by heart attack soon after, I presume. Or by any means at all, since we've learned Kira is not restricted to heart attacks. But there will be something else, something I won't be able to predict."

"What do you mean?"

"Star... does things, sometimes. Things it is physically impossible to do. A keyboard has no internet access, yet he can type on it remotely as if he was there. That's just one example. I have noticed over the years - strange incidents that happen on the cases Star solves. Raye Penber lost his memory of the night he met Tsuki. Tsuki could make people fall unconscious. These incidents are impossible moves, and I have a theory that Star may in fact have a supernatural power."

"Ryuzaki, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, Mogi-san. Do not interrupt me, please. Of course, these incidents are masked by all the other unlikely occurrences, the ones which aren't impossible but simply good hacking. They may not even exist and I'm simply forming false positives." L took his thumb away from his lips and twisted his head round to look at Soichiro. "Could you get me another coffee? If I move from this posture I may lose my train of thought."

"Uh, sure Ryuzaki." L looked forward again.

"Tying this into the Kira case... maybe Star wants us to capture Kira so he can interrogate them on their power? No, not his style at all. A demonstration of Kira's power, then. He wants to see it in action for himself."

"Here's your coffee, Ryuzaki."

"Thank you. Now since Star has so graciously revealed Kira's identity to us, the least we can do is return the favour. We'll trick him into showing us how he kills. Watari, tell Wedy to focus solely on Higuchi. I want the house bugged. I want all six of his cars bugged too."

"As you say, Ryuzaki."

"Good. Mogi, I need you to book a three hour timeslot for tomorrow on Sakura TV. We'll run a special, and announce that Kira's identity will be revealed at the end. We won't need to reveal any faces at this point, because Kira is now extremely paranoid and probably feels totally cornered. It won't be hard to convince him that the broadcast is real. But then again, we'll need to show him somebody, get him to display his killing power. So who? Obviously, we can't use either of you. I think a death row criminal would probably be best."

"That's immoral, Ryuzaki! You can't just-"

"Oh, Yagami-san, I can. I am L."

And just like that, another plan was born. L began to weave a trap, one that would ensnare Kyosuke Higuchi and catch Kira once and for all.  
And somewhere, a little five year old boy named Light Yagami allowed himself a small, confident smile. Things were going exactly as predicted.


	23. Chapter 23

"_Well here we are again_

_It's always such a pleasure_

_Remember when you tried to kill me twice?"_

Kyosuke Higuchi burst into Namikawa Reiji's office, looking for Mikami Teru. Instead he was greeted by a small boy, sitting half lotus on the table, staring at him.

The kanji above his head read Tsuki Yagami.

Just below that was his lifespan, hanging in red numbers that did not change.

"What the hell?" Higuchi staggered back as if burned. "Zero? How is that even-"

"Hello Kira-san." Red cut him off by motioning to one of the chairs. "Please sit down. My name at the moment is Red, not Tsuki, and I would appreciate it if you could address me as such."

When Higuchi had first entered, Light had been watching very carefully, and he had seen it - the man's eyes were red. That, combined with the fact that Higuchi was looking above his head, confirmed his theory. One, Higuchi was Kira. Two, Kira possessed the Redeye power. And three, Light Yagami had a remaining lifespan of Zero.

In a way, it made perfect sense. His body was perpetually frozen at the moment if his death, so that was what he had expected the lifespan to show. Plus, Higuchi was most definitely scared by him now.

"W-who are you?"

"I am what you might call... a messenger. You have angered a lot of people by writing down those names, Kyosuke-kun."

"How do you know about the Death Note?" Bingo.

"The Death Note is not the only thing out there that cannot be explained by mortal beings. I am a messenger from the All and Only, the one you humans call Kami."

"Shut up!" This time, Higuchi pulled out a pistol from a fold in his suit with trembling hands. Holding it up, he shot Red at point blank range, then began to laugh insanely.

"Nobody can go against Kira- huh? What the heck?"

Red touched the bullet wound in the side of his head with three fingers. They came away sticky with blood, but holding the bullet. The wound itself had already closed up.

"Kyosuke, I'm sure you have noticed my lifespan is perpetually at its end. Those eyes of yours would tell you that much, at least. Why did you feel the need to test that fact? Surely, it wasn't because you let your anger get the better of you?"

"No way... you're really... an angel?"

"You humans have such silly notions! I am simply a messenger here. If you looked into the face of an angel then the evil and darkness would be stripped from your soul and sent to burn eternally in the fires of hell. I'm told that it's quite painful. I guess you'll find out soon."

"W-what?"

"You can't see your own lifespan, can you?" Higuchi slowly shook his head. "I thought not. Well, I'll give you a hint. You'll be dead sometime within the next week. You can try and change that fact, but it won't work, I'm afraid."

The guess about the Redeye user not being able to see their own lifespan was based off Beyond Birthday's attempt to commit suicide. If he had known he wasn't destined to die then, he wouldn't have tried.

"Now, onto the purpose of my trip here. This is a warning to you, Kira. You will be caught by L in a few days. Cooperate with him. Tell him everything he needs to know about the Death Note, but do not mention anything about me. In fact, pretend this meeting never happened. I will be there, watching you."

"I understand... Red-sama..."

"Good. This is a way to lessen your crimes, which you'll definitely appreciate later. Nobody else really thinks you deserve this; as I said earlier, using a divine power for selfish purposes has angered a lot of people. So... until we meet again, Kyosuke." And then Red hopped off the desk and walked calmly out the door, leaving a shaking mess of a man in his wake. He allowed himself a small, confident smile. Things were going exactly as predicted.

It would be some time later before Higuchi would get up from where he had been crying in a fetal position on the floor. He would stagger over to the computer and search up the name 'All and Only'. The first result was the webside of the Cult of Stars. He would see the list of its members - Teru Mikami's name was there. And then the computer screen went dark, and red lines carved themselves into letters.

'I'm still watching you.' Higuchi broke into a fresh round of tears.

It was this sight which Rem found as she floated through the wall - Higuchi curled up in his chair, crying.

"What happened?"

"Rem... I'm going to die! Help me, please!"

"Everyone will die... Have you only just realised your own mortality?"

"N-no... But I'm going to die! This week! It's fated!" Rem looked again at the man's remaining lifespan. Fifteen years were left.

"Be that as it may, I see no way to help you. I cannot lengthen your lifespan, only shorten it." Well, if she really wanted to, she could - but she didn't want to. The world would be a better place without this greedy murderer in it.

"L's going to catch me... and I'm going to tell him everything! Death Notes, Shinigami, the Eye deal... everything! I don't wanna go to hell!"

"The human who uses the Death Note will go to neither Heaven nor Hell."

"That's a lie! Liar! The messenger said I'm going to hell... I have to do this, Rem!" Then he suddenly stopped. "But if I just sit back and let it happen, then of course it will... I have to fight this! I'm not going to die. You can't kill me, Kami!" Fire seemed to light up his eyes with insanity as he stood up.

"What are you doing?"

"Don't talk to me anymore, Rem. If L really is that close, then my house and cars are probably bugged. But he can't arrest me - he's got no evidence! I keep the Death Note on me! And if I can just get through the next week without dying, then I'll have won!" He drew from the inside of his coat a black notebook. Tearing a page out of the book, he replaced it.

"If I can still continue my activities as Kira, without looking like I'm doing anything at all, then L will have no choice but to stop suspecting me - it' foolproof! Haha!" He laid the torn piece of paper on the desk. "I'll leave one here just in case..." Then he walked out.

Unbeknownst to him, Rem picked up the piece he had left behind and left, flying away through the outside wall.

Unbeknownst to either of them, Red was currently listening in on the conversation from the computer. Light didn't think that Kira had a multiple personality disorder - he had shown no signs whatsoever before this. But as the conversation progressed, he began to doubt his theory more and more. Kira actually believed this 'Rem' person was here, that much was obvious. Light grew more confused - was this a product of the extreme stress he had placed Higuchi under?

Then the word 'Shinigami' was mentioned and Light suddenly understood. Another piece of the puzzle clicked into place - there was a Shinigami attached to the Death Note. The Death Note that was currently in Higuchi's jacket!

Then Higuchi walked out, and the scrap of paper he had left behind rose up of its own accord and floated through the window. The closed window.

Quickly, Light jumped through the Ghost World to meet Sol, who was currently watching over his body as a raven.

"Sol." He opened the window of the office. "That piece of paper - follow it, but don't make it obvious. When you find its destination, fly back to me at the Cult. Go now!" He launched the Raven off his hand, and it soared out the window, wings flapping as it pursued the paper.

'So... that was unexpected.' Light smiled brightly. 'It's nice when unexpected things happen. Brightens up my day. But...' He looked out of the still open window, watching the sun slowly sink ever further towards its demise. 'I'm going to have to make another backup plan. Things could go badly wrong if I'm not prepared well enough.' Then he turned, swung his rucksack - he carried it everywhere with him - onto his back, and walked out through the fire escape, locking it again as he left.

He did not head for the cult. Instead, he made a quick pit-stop at the more shady side of town. What he wanted done was nothing outright illegal, of course, but those on the alternative side of the law were more likely to shut up about him and just take the money. He didn't need an ethically minded person being concerned about why a six year old was custom making a dagger, after all.

Light, almost unconscious of his actions, grasped the CST shard that hung around his neck. Its crescent shape almost perfectly matched the moon that hung in the starry sky, just about to set.

'Not a lot of pollution tonight. Kira is probably indirectly the cause.'

Because Light himself liked Kira. Not the person, of course - Higuchi was a greedy idiot and Light couldn't care less if he died a horrible death being tortured by L for information - but the ideal. To have the power to kill at your fingertips was a strangely beautiful thing, and if he had gained it, he would have used it much more productively. That's why he had freaked out Higuchi, really. He wanted him to turn in the Death Note and explain the Redeye power, and then to see what L would do. Would he use it to aid him? Would he lock it away forever? Would he destroy it - actually, could it be destroyed? Good question, that. CST granted effective immortality, and its users had no way to pass on. He could see the Death Note doing something similar, and enduring no matter what happened to it.

But he had seen with his own (not eyes, but he had been there to witness it), a page being ripped out. If it really did endure forever, than that shouldn't be possible. Not unless it was only the book that stayed, and individual pages could be destroyed. But that would require the book to have either an endless supply of pages, or a way of spawning them. It was a bit far-fetched. Fifteen percent, maybe.

Still, it was definitely worth looking into once the Death Note was in custody.

Suddenly, a thought struck Light. He was going to have to go back to the task force if he wanted to get a closer look at the notebook. He almost hissed in annoyance.

'They'll just treat me like an idiotic child again, and this time they won't let me get away so easily. Oh well, I'll have Sol. And also L - it will definitely help to have somebody to make intelligent conversation with. I've... missed him. There's no point hiding it.'

In a way, it made the irrational, illogical decision of returning to the task force seem almost attractive, and that scared Light. Was he falling into the trap so many of the humans did, becoming dependent on companionship and weak? Yes. He could not deny it.

'I have to sort this out.'

Early the next morning, Light walked into his room. There, Sol - still in the body of the raven - was quite literally hopping about with anxiety. As soon as he saw Light, he flew over and perched on the top of the boy's head.

'I've been really worried, Star-sama! I thought Kira had got you!' Light reached out an arm and the bird hopped onto it. He began to stroke Sol's feathers absent-mindedly.

'Haven't I already told you, Sol? I have tested this. Kira cannot kill me. Nor you. You are safe.' The raven relaxed in Light's arms.

'I know, it's just I couldn't help worrying, Star-sama.'

'Try not to. Irrational fears are one of many things that can impede a person's judgement.'

'Yes, Star-sama.'

'Now, where did the paper go?' Sol jumped out of Light's arms and onto the table, where he stood up straight.

'The paper went in the wall of the house of a girl. She had a man there with her, but she was in charge.'

'Did you get their IP address?'

'Yes, Star-sama.' He hopped across the table and pointed with a taloned foot towards a torn piece of plain paper with numbers written on it. 'At least, I think so. It was stuck on the wall by one of the computers.'

Light inspected the number. It looked genuine.

'Sol, you stay here and eat something, or you're going to have to find a new body soon.'

'Of course, Star-sama.'

Light turned his attention away from Sol, and looked at the paper again. One of the big advantages of being as intelligent as he was was that he had total recall. He could remember every second of every day since his death, and a substantial amount before. This included useless information he picked up simply from travelling through Cyberspace.

One of these types of information was IP addresses. He knew the IP of every single entry or exit point he had ever used, and as he looked at the paper it matched up with one he had seen before.

"Interesting... so L was right on his theory. And the fact that the Shinigami is visiting when Higuchi is about to be apprehended... up to twelve percent. I might actually have to use it." Light scrunched up the paper and threw it into the bin. He did not need it anymore - total recall meant the number was stored in his brain as if somebody had burned it there with a brand. Then he went over to the bed and curled up inside it, leaving his body there. It was time to do some surveillance. But first...

Light used his powers to activate a machine hidden in the bin. It filled with flames, destroying anything in it. Then he jumped into Cyberspace and vanished from the room.

Inside the bin, the paper containing Misa Amane's IP address slowly smoldered to ashes.


	24. Chapter 24

"_She was a lot like you_

_(Maybe not quite as heavy)"_

Misa was in her bedroom, doing her makeup, when she saw a piece of paper float through the window.

"Huh?" The paper seemed to almost have a mind of its own, zooming towards her and slapping her in the head. "Aaaaagh!" She fell over and clutched her head.

Images flashed through her eyes. Criminals, heart attacks, Lind L. Tailor, Shinigami, and at the center of it all, a little black notebook.

"Are you alright, Misa-san?" A man knocked hesitantly on the door. Misa sat up blearily.

"Yep! I'm totally fine, Mochi! I just kinda tripped, that's all!"

"Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine! I landed on the bed, so I'm not hurt at all!"

"Are you sure? You screamed pretty loud there..."

"I... saw a spider! A really massive one! It was huge!"

"Would you like me to get rid of it for you?" Misa narrowed her eyes and glared at the door. Why wouldn't Mochi just go away?

"No, it crawled out the window. I'm fine!"

"Ok then..." The sound of footsteps was heard, getting fainter as the man left. Misa was left to stare at the paper in her lap.

"I'm Kira..." Then she took it and looked around, her eyes fixing on empty air. "Rem? Uh... not that I'm not really grateful or anything, but why exactly did you give me my memories back?"

-Silence-

"Ok, that explains it... but why now? Why not before?"

-Silence-

"Mochi? He's a police agent?"

-Silence-

"What am I going to do now? Why, I'll become Kira again, of course!"

-Silence-

"Stop being such a worrywart, Rem. Even if the police do catch me, they won't have evidence and I can just give up my memories again! It worked the last time, didn't it?"

-Silence-

"Yeah, ok, maybe I'll wait a bit. Who is the third Kira anyway?"

-Silence-

"So, as long as Higuchi is suspected, they won't suspect me of the killings!"

-Silence-

"I see your point, Rem." She looked down at the paper she was holding. "This won't fit many names on it. But once Higuchi is captured, can you get me the notebook back? That way I won't have to keep touching the paper!"

-Silence-

"Yay! You're the best, Rem!" Then she quickly tore off a small fragment of the paper. Getting a roll of tape, she stuck it to the underside of her foot. "There! That should work. Ok, so remember - don't kill Higuchi, try and convince him to give up the notebook. Then give it back to me!"

-Silence-

"Pleeease? Pretty please? You know if you don't, I'll just start killing again with this paper."

-Silence-

"It'll be fine, Rem. Stop worrying!"

Just then, there was a knock at her door.

"Misa-san, who were you talking to?" Her head whipped around to face the door and she quickly stowed the paper out of sight.

"Oh, nobody! Misa-Misa gets kinda lonely sometimes, so... Misa-Misa talks to herself!"

"Okay... Misa-san, are you decent? There is something I would like to discuss with you."

"Come on in, Mochi!" The door slowly opened and Mogi walked in.

"Tonight, it's my brother's birthday party. I'm going to have to leave you on your own. Is that okay?"

"Yep! That's fine. But Misa-Misa can't cook that well, so could you make something for me before you go?"

"Of course, Misa-san." Mogi looked around. "So, where was the spider?"

"Huh?"

"You said you saw a spider, right?"

"Oh, that spider! It was just here!" Misa pointed at the windowsill. "It crawled out the window pretty quickly, though."

Suddenly, there was a crash from another room in the house. Mogi's head whipped around and he rushed out of the room.

One of the baskets that held files had been knocked off the top of the bookcase. Files were spilled all over the floor. Mogi groaned.

"I'm going to have to clear all this up..." He crouched down and began to gather up the files. "Hey, wait! How the heck did this get knocked over? The window is closed!"

But it wasn't. It was wide open, even though he was perfectly sure he had closed it half an hour ago. Intrigued, he tried to think of why this might be so... but his thoughts were interrupted.  
For a moment, he thought he saw a flash of black out of the corner of his eye, but when he looked properly, it was gone. Intrigued, he got up and was about to investigate when the alarm on his watch beeped. The meal in the oven would be ready about now.

"I'll clear it up later..." and he walked out of the room into the kitchen. The files were still on the floor.

Cautiously, a black raven hopped out from behind the sofa. It flew gently over to the files and began to move them about with one claw. Then it grabbed a page, accidentally tearing it in two with a yank. It flew off out the window with the torn half.

When Mogi, a minute or so later, re-entered the lounge, he saw an even more scattered pile of files and papers, and groaned again.

"The wind seems to have it out for me today..."

If he had stopped to look, he would have seen the raven he knew as Sol watching him from outside the window, a piece of paper in one foot. Sol turned around, jumped off the tree branch he was resting on and glided away, off into the setting sun.

"Sol, I have a task for you. I want you to trail Higuchi today." Light said abruptly to the empty room.

'Star-sama?' While Light spoke out loud, Sol had no voice to speak with, so the reply was mental.

"You will use my body to do so." Now Sol was even more shocked. Light almost never gave over control of his body for extended periods of time. "I need it to be close to Higuchi when L moves in to arrest him."

'Yes, Star-sama.'

"Good. If L is doing as I predicted, he will attempt to make Higuchi kill someone, having already bugged the man's house. He wants Star to see this, so the method he is using will be relatively predictable." Light turned on the TV, and changed the channel until he found the one he wanted. "Sakura TV says they are doing a Saturday night Kira special, in which they will have a guest who claims to know Kira's identity. It's a bit obvious, but I don't think Higuchi will see through the deception."

'What are you going to do, Star-sama, once Higuchi is caught?'

"I'll just go up to them and offer an exchange of information. I won't pretend to be Tsuki; I'll call myself Red and they can make what they want of that. Tsuki and I look nothing alike now, so nobody should jump to conclusions. This ought to allow me to get a closer look at the Death Note in return for telling them about the Redeye power and helping to interrogate Higuchi. I've already set things up so he'll talk if I ask - my prediction of what L would do was spot on, or at least has been so far. After that... Misa Amane will need to be caught. The task force will learn of a second Kira quickly enough from Higuchi, so there's no need for me to tell them who it is. I'll work closely with the task force on capturing them, and during that time I can get a close look at the Death Note."

'What will you do once she is caught, Star-sama?'

"Eighty-five percent chance that the Shinigami Rem will call game over and leave with the notebook. In that case, I'll just leave the task force and have Star contact them saying I'm fine. Three percent chance she'll give it to someone else, and we have to start the whole charade over again."

'What about the other twelve percent?'

"...what did I tell you about asking unnecessary questions, Sol?"

'I'm sorry, Star-sama.'

Later that afternoon, and the sky was filling with dark grey clouds. As the first few drops of rain began to fall, Light stared almost blankly out the window. The air seemed to be charged with electricity - or maybe that was just the tension, which was so thick it could be cut with a knife.

A storm was just on the horizon.

"Poetic fallacy?" Light murmured quietly. "The last time it rained like this was the day I met Raye Penber... I was stronger then. I've gotten so weak, so tied down to others who could betray me at the slightest whim. Was it because I let my hold on my emotions slip?" He continued staring, watching the clouds begin to dump rain in sheets, until the window was blurry and distorted with the waves of water that cascaded down it. "I probably shouldn't have done that, then."

Twelve percent. His hand clutched a secret pocket at the side of his clothes, and he let one tear slip out of the corner of his eye. Then he rubbed it away and turned back to the room - Sol had already left, to scout around the area, so nobody had seen his momentary weakness. He needed to plan.

Sakura TV's special would begin at five in the evening. Kira was due to be revealed at eight. At any time between those hours, L's plan could go into action. It was three thirty.

In about half an hour, Sol would return from his scouting trip, and take Light's body to Higuchi's. Higuchi relied mainly on the security system to keep intruders out, rather than hiring actual guards. Light would make sure Sol got to a good position, while wiping his body from the camera feeds.

Light would then stay in cyberspace in Higuchi's house, watching the Sakura TV broadcast and at the same time monitoring what L's cameras were picking up. Once Higuchi made a move that would incriminate him as Kira (Light wasn't sure exactly what L's plan was, though he highly suspected it involved another Death Row criminal, just like Lind L. Tailor), it would be only a matter of time before the police arrested him. What Light was not at all sure of was how they were planning to do it - would they wait until Monday, when Higuchi left for work? The man did not go out at weekends. Or would they attempt to storm the house?

He didn't have a clue, and that was what made it so tense and exciting.

"So... the endgame is approaching. If I join up with you now, will it break the rules? I don't think so. I know who Kira is. So do you - or, at least, you think you do. But anyways, you'll find Misa Amane soon enough, I think." Or would they? Would Misa begin to kill again, or would she lay low and not be caught?

Either way, Kira would cease to be exist, and L would win the game he was playing against Kira. But Light would win the game against both Kira and L - and in the end, that was the only thing that really mattered.

"But back to the plan..." A boom of thunder sounded on the horizon, interrupting Light's thoughts. He narrowed his eyes almost imperceptibly as he turned to face the window. A forked flash of lightning lit up the dark sky, and more thunder rolled around. Evidently, the soundproofing measures he had in place were not enough.  
Giving up on his thoughts, he merely sat and watched the distorted view of the city, filtered through rain and lit by shards of light. It was, in a way, mesmerising.

"Again, poetic fallacy? I hope so." There was nothing like a turbulent road ahead to make things that little bit more interesting, and Light was getting bored of Kira. He wished Kira would defeat his carefully laid plans and give him an actual challenge for once. "It's not like anybody else will, at this point. Right?"

Light tilted his head as he talked to the closed window and the storm beyond. The rumbling of thunder was the only answer he got.


	25. Chapter 25

"_Go make some new disaster_

_That's what I'm counting on"_

"I feel I need to do this. Kira must be stopped!"

"But surely you must be scared? Kira could kill you if you tell the world who he is!"

"That's a chance I'm willing to take, in order to free the world from Kira's reign. And I can hope that maybe, just maybe, Kira can't kill me. I've hidden my face and name, and I hope that Kira will never find them out."

"I'm going to ask you something I think the whole world would like to know - how did you find out? Kira is a formidable force."

"I overheard a meeting between seven people. It was eight, but one had already died. He was killed by Kira, because he didn't want to go along with the plan."

It had been L's suggestion that they include that piece of information. One of the Yotsuba board members had in fact died of a heart attack before they had a chance to bug the conference room. This would hopefully prove to Higuchi that the person speaking behind the screen at Sakura TV really did know his identity.

Soichiro was watching both the broadcast and the cameras that showed Higuchi staring in anxiousness at the television.

"Surely this is enough to prove Higuchi is Kira?" he whispered urgently. L gave a slight shake of the head.

"No. We know Kira is in Yotsuba, so Higuchi may just be worried that he will be associated with Kira. Besides, that is not what we are trying to prove. We are trying to see a demonstration of Kira's power."

"But what it he's not Kira? What do we do then?"

"He is Kira."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Either he is, or Star has a very good alternate reason for making us do this."

"Or he could be lying to you for a joke."

"Not his style. Listen!" L's eyes snapped back to the Sakura TV broadcast.

"What is it, L?" L did not reply, he was listening intently. On the screen, the two silhouettes were still talking.

"So, what motivated you to make this big step, to put yourself in so much danger?"

"The danger I am facing now is nothing compared to the collective danger we all face if Kira is not stopped. It was the proper thing to do."  
L was still staring at the screen.

"L, tell me, what is it?" Soichiro was almost desperate now. L let out a breath.

"They have deviated from the script we wrote..." He passed it along the desk, not taking his eyes of the Sakura TV broadcast. Soichiro quickly skimmed through it - L was right, they weren't following the script anymore. The person they had at Sakura TV was a death row criminal, who would go free if he followed L's instructions - so why on earth wasn't he?

L suddenly realised something. He was.

He quickly pulled up a second camera feed from Sakure TV - this time, it was from a camera behind the screen, where both the reporter and the criminal's faces were visible - obviously, this was not being broadcasted to the public.

The two did not match. One was following the script exactly, the other had completely abandoned it.

"Star..." It was the only real explanation.

"What about him?" Soichiro had obviously not come to the same conclusion yet.

"He's interfering with the broadcast."

"How can he do that?"

"Focus on the why. I have no idea how Star does anything."

"Alright, why then?"

"I don't know why either..." L brought his thumb to his lips and totally ignored Soichiro's exasperated sigh.

Why did he do it? More to the point, if Star was hacking the system, he had to be aware of the other camera, so why was that feed not altered as well? Granted, it must be harder to modify an image instead of just a voice, but...

"Star wanted us to know he's tampering with it." Which meant he wanted to demonstrate something, sice Star had no other reason besides just to brag that he could - and L knew well the extent of Star's abilities, that bordered the outright impossible so much that he was beginning to suspect they were...

"Watch Higuchi very carefully, Yagami-san. Mogi-san, you too." Mogi gave a start at having his name called but nodded, turning his attention away from Sakura TV and to the camera feed from Higuchi's home. L continued to stare, his thumb almost in his mouth as his mind whirred.

"Do you have anything to say to Kira before you reveal his identity?"

"Yes. Kira, I know you are watching. I know who you are. Tonight, all will be revealed, and the streets will run Red with the blood of your innocent victims. L will catch you, and you will be dead before the dawn."

"That's very... poetic. How can you be so sure that Kira will be dead?"

"Oh, I've seen it, and it's as sure as his name. His lifespan is ticking down, towards its inevitable end." L's eyes widened. So... Star wanted to send a message to the Kira he knew was watching. What was it then? - L had not understood any of the message.

"Ryuzaki!" A gasp from Mogi flicked his attention over to Higuchi's screen. The man's eyes were wide open and shocked, and he was murmuring words to himself.  
"it's him... It's him, oh my god it's him... what am I gonna do? I'M GONNA DIE!" Higuchi covered his head with his hands.

L looked curiously at the illogical actions Kira was taking. Clearly, the message meant more than he had been able to figure out.

"One hundred percent."

"Ryuzaki, what-"

"Higuchi is Kira. One hundred percent. Star wanted to prove that to us before we went ahead with the next stage of our plan. Now he has, we should proceed." His hand hovered over the 'enter' key on the keyboard. Lightning flashed bright white through the window as his finger pressed it.

The endgame had begun.

A few minutes before...

Light was currently floating in the world of Cyberspace, listening to the Sakura TV broadcast and watching Higuchi at the same time. Suddenly a though occurred to him.  
The task force did not know Higuchi was Kira, they only suspected it. So the fact that they had initiated this plan on only circumstantial evidence they knew had been given by himself (bearing in mind, of course, the last time they had done that it had led nowhere and simply been a manipulation on his part in order to increase suspicion on Mikami) meant that they did trust him, an awful lot. Or, at least, L did.

It was quite a nice feeling, really. Of course, L would not be sure that he wasn't being manipulated, he might even strongly suspect it. But L still went along with the plan, trusting Star almost blindly.

Of course, Light himself would never do such a thing, and this highlighted one of the key character differences between himself and L. Light did not rely on other people and certainly he did not trust them. They were just humans, of a particularly intelligent species Homo Sapiens, nothing more. Like everything, they were guided by self-interest and would betray another if it benefited them.

So the fact that L trusted him enough to do this, having never seen his face or heard his voice (at least, L didn't think he had) was... interesting.

But Light knew it had to be bothering L a lot, and L would also be on the lookout for anything suspicious. He needed to prove to the man that Higuchi really was Kira, even if it meant losing a little of the lead he had gained.

...why exactly he felt this need, Light chose to ignore. After all, it's not like L would understand any of it (although being L he would work something out, of that Light was certain).

So Light reached out and tampered with Sakura TV's camera, leaving the one he knew was transmitting only to L alone. He would pick up on the difference between the two and realise what it meant.

Higuchi's reaction to this was expected. It brought on another panic attack (Light really could not understand this human reaction of panic, for he had never felt it. Up to the age of five he had been protected from the world and past that he was immortal, so any mess-ups wouldn't be fatal - they were just either annoying or fun, depending on his mood). So... L would realise that Star had sent a message to Kira, something that obviously disturbed him. It was enough for L to know that Higuchi was Kira, and that they were not being taken advantage of again.

...mostly.

Anyway, now there was only one thing left to do. Wait.

At the Kira Task force Headquarters, L pressed 'enter'.

Now, let us move on to something which may seem totally unrelated. Light was an incredibly unusual name for a boy to be given; not just an unusual Japanese name, but incredibly uncommon anywhere in the world. The word 'Light' was English, which meant that his parents had to come up with an alternate spelling.

'Light' and 'Lightning' are quite closely linked, as words go. In fact, one is inside the other. Now this may seem quite a weak correlation, but take a look at the Japanese pronunciation of Light's name.

'Raito' was what most people unwittingly called him (or would, had they known his true name. He never used it), due to the Japanese lack of an 'L' sound. The Japanese word 'Rai' - which translates to 'Lightning' - was in 'Raito'. Indeed, Light's name could easily have been written with the kanji for 'Lightning' and 'Person'. What was even important was that this link was the opposite in Japanese of what it was in English. Light made up Lightning, but Raito was made up by Lightning. It made the link that much stronger.

Why this information? Well, it makes what happened next so much more intriguing.

Many people think that the odds of being struck by lightning are so incredibly high that it will never happen to them. Not so; while the odds are 1 to 280,000 against a named person being hit in the next year, for a house it drops to only 1 in 200. Nevertheless, it is incredibly unlikely that Higuchi's house would be hit at the exact moment that L pressed the enter key.

So much for probability.

Light was aware a split second before that something just went incredibly wrong. The flow of electricity running through the lines of Cyberspace gave a sudden jolt and scattered in all directions, caused by the charge difference of the approaching electrons. It was to Light, who was currently residing in the electrical current flow, a sensation not unlike being blown into tiny pieces by a bomb blast and scattered over a wide area, only without the terrible pain (The fact he had something like this to compare it to is a story for another time - suffice to say, the Manipulator cases had not gone smoothly at all). He had just enough time to comprehend this terrible imbalance before the strike hit.

It was a flash of blinding white so bright it would cause a brain to explode from processing the colour. The bluish-white lines of Cyberspace were overloaded with the electricity and burst open, flooding the virtual world with every type of sensation from noise to light to pain to pleasure to heat to cold to a bitter, iron smell.

And then it was gone, leaving darkness in its place. Light was stranded in the dark with only his thoughts for company.

'That was... lightning? It must have blown the power out.' Light's head was still spinning.

'The chances of that happening are... astronomically small.' Black.

'Am I... stranded here? I've never been in Cyberspace when the power cut out before... This is a new experience for me.' Black.

'So, I have a time out, apparently. I wonder, how long has it been? It's hard to keep track of time in here.' Black.

'Minutes?' Black.

'Hours?' Black.

'It can't be days, or I would be more bored by now. But really, this is... so interesting. A void, where nothing can exist, and yet I do? What does that make me?' Black.  
'I always thought that I existed in Cyberspace as data, or electricity, and yet this proves that I don't. I'm just an observer, not actually there in the network.' Blac-blue.

The power was back on. (That was fast, or was it?) Time out over.

'Kira, where are you? Hmm, I wonder what's happened. This has totally thrown all my carefully laid plans out the window.' And if Light had his body at the moment, he would have been laughing, a massive almost insane grin on his face.

'Oh, this is brilliant!' Because it was.


	26. Chapter 26

"_You want your freedom – take it._

_That's what I'm counting on._

_I used to want you dead but now I only want you gone."_

Higuchi was still crying when there was a massive flash and a boom. He jolted up, only to be met by darkness.

"Rem... what happened?" Forgetting for a short moment that he was not supposed to be talking like this in case L had installed cameras, he looked around. The Shinigami was staring around with the same sort of detatched gaze it always had.

"I do not know."

"Well, the power's out. I can't watch - oh my god! They're going to announce my identity any minute now!"

"What will you do?"

"I... I... I'll... I don't know, Rem. Maybe I should just wait for L and the police to catch me... no. This power cut means any cameras they have aren't working! I can get out of here, leave the country! If I survive a week then I'll be fine! Haha, bye-bye L! Try and follow me now!"

Rem's eyes widened minutely at this new plan. She would be bound to follow Higuchi, and would not be able to see Misa...

"If you leave you will not be able to continue killing Japanese criminals."

"So what, Rem? It's not like I care, I'm only doing that because... oh." The agreement they had come to when Rem had given him the death note was that he would kill criminals, and in return he could use the Death Note to do what he liked on the side.

"I will be forced to write your name in my notebook, because you have broken the deal I made." Now she could tell him to give up the notebook, but she didn't like him, and this way tied up any loose ends - plus, he obviously didn't want to die.

"No! I'll stay, just don't kill me! ...In that case, I have to stop Red's broadcast. Somehow. Aargh! How do I do that!"

"I do not know." Whoever 'Red' was, he was a formidable enemy, Rem was sure of that.

"Sakura TV. That's it, I'll go to Sakura TV! Rem, we're leaving. Now." Rem floated behind Higuchi, wondering what this would mean for Misa.

Listening in from outside the window, Sol widened his eyes. They were - leaving? What should he do? Quickly, he pressed a button on his watch four times. This would send an alarm signal to Star-sama telling him that something had gone badly wrong. But in the meantime... stay, or go?

By the time the dim green glow of the emergency lighting Higuchi had installed came back on, Sol had made his decision.

The second that L pressed the enter button, there was a bright flash outside the window and Higuchi's camera feeds all went dark at once.

"What just happened?" Asked Mogi, looking at the static on the screen that had replaced the interior of Higuchi's living room. Soichiro was also troubled.

"Was it Star?"

"Maybe." L replied, his mind whizzing through options. "I am unable to ascertain why he would do such a thing. Could it be that we have misread his intentions?"

'Maybe that little show before was to confirm to us that Higuchi is Kira without us having to do this. In that case... no. It's not his style.'

"Maybe not. It's possible that it was simply an electrical failure."

"But Ryuzaki, surely the chances of that happening are-"

"-Extraordinarily low, yes, but we cannot discard the possibility. However, we must alter our plans. Wedy!"

"Yes, L?"

"Are there any bugs, cameras or tracking devices that are still transmitting?"

"Not in the house, no. The cameras in the cars also got fried but we still have the GPS positioners. Those things are designed to survive an aircraft crash, they're practically indestructible."

"Good. If any of them moves, notify me immediately." L turned back to Soichiro and Mogi.

"If Star was the cause of this, then Higuchi may or may not still be able to watch the Sakura TV broadcast. If he can, then we shouldn't go ahead with it. If we can't see him on our cameras we can't even tell if it's him killing, so the whole plan will go to waste. Mogi, tell Sakura TV to cut to a commercial break. We need more time." Mogi nodded and picked up the phone.

Soichiro suddenly had a thought.

"If this is Star's doing, does that mean he is conspiring with Kira against us?"

"It's highly unlikely that Star and Kira are co-operating."

"Why? How can you tell?"

"Because if they were, everyone here would already be dead." It was a chilling thought, but completely true.

'Light-kun does known my name, after all.'

"However, your theory may have some merit."

"What? But you just said it was unlikely!"

"Star does not care about the Kira case... much. His sense of morals is almost non-existent and he lives only for the challenge. He may have decided to do this simply to throw a wrench in our plans."

"That's despicable! How could he!"

"This is Star we're talking about. He held the entire world hostage on a whim, simply to protect my identity."

"But if he was protecting you, then surely he's on your side?"

'Ah, but that was before I effectively let his successor die.' Of course, L did not say this out loud.

"He doesn't take sides. He's just in it for the challenge to his intellect. I challenge him and so he keeps me alive."

"That makes a certain twisted kind of sense."

"I know. Regardless, this is not a discussion of Star's moral philosophy. We need to decide what to do now - Mogi, are they cutting to a commercial?"

"Yes, Ryuzaki."

"Alright, tell them to get the criminal back in the prison van. We don't need him running around complicating matters." Really, it was lucky he had chosen an inmate for the broadcast - there were police all around Sakura TV. These would be essential for what was to come.

"Higuchi will attempt to kill the criminal in order to protect his identity. Since he doesn't know their face yet, he will be forced to go to Sakura TV. We'll arrest him there."

"But we don't know how he kills!"

"That doesn't matter now. The situation is too dire to give him free reign anymore. We need to bring in Kira. We can torture a confession out of him later if we need to." L didn't even register the shocked looks of the two next to him. A voice crackled over the speakers.

"L, it's Wedy. You told me to tell you if Higuchi made a move. One of his cars has started. It looks to be heading towards central Tokyo at high speed." L nodded and spun round in his chair, facing the startled eyes of Mogi and Soichiro.

"Thank you, Wedy. Everyone, we need to get to Sakura TV ourselves, before Higuchi. Watari, get the gear - we'll need the helicopter."

Light exited the Cyberspace in Higuchi's home. The place still had a power cut; what had allowed him out of the Void was a backup emergency power system. Higuchi himself was nowhere to be seen.

'I wonder how long it's been. There's no system clock on this network to use, and I can't connect to the outside world. Higuchi made sure that no wifi overlaps here, and his own system is almost totally closed. What links there were got knocked out with the power. Hmm.' Light jumped to one of the lights and attempted to turn it on. As expected, it didn't work.

'So that means I can't restart the power from here... I'll just have to leave manually.' Looking for Sol, he was unable to sense the other spirit's presence.  
'Not with my body then... so how?'

A couple of minutes later, one of the cars parked outside of Higuchi's home started up unexpectedly. Headlights on, it drove down the gravel drive and onto the road.

Nobody was in it - well, not strictly true.

It had been a while since he had done this, Light mused. Once the car was on the road, he did a quick system diagnostic - after all, he didn't want the vehicle to blow sky high because the fuel tank was leaking (He was currently in the car's own personal Cyberspace, and didn't particularly want to get stuck in the Void again). It wasn't, but he found a Blackbox GPS transmitter stuck on the underside - L had bugged them? Well, that's nice.

Higuchi could be anywhere, but assuming he was in a car (He owned six, only five were there, so he must have taken one) then L would be able to track him. Light would also be able to track him but that would break the rules, so he decided against it.

'I need another way, then.' Of course he had one on hand - Light always had a backup plan.

Abandoning the car next to a house (what would L, who was undoubtably tracking the car right now, think of that?), he used their internet connection to get back to Cyberspace.

Sol, who was in Light's body at the moment, had been instructed to wear his watch at all times. Really, 'watch' wasn't what it was. It had been crammed full of the best of the best hardware and software, and also acted as a tracking device, phone and Light's personal satellite link to Cyberspace so he could reach it anywhere he was. So, all he really had to do was jump to that and he would find Sol, who would be with Higuchi. Problem solved.

Light exited Cyberspace at his watch - the signal was not as strong as usual, so it took a couple of seconds to find it. It was... on the ground in the middle of a road. The watch itself looked pretty beaten up, as if it had been knocked about by cars. As Light watched, a massive sixteen-wheeler truck came rushing by, right over the watch. Finally, the internet link it had been holding on so feebly to flickered and died. Light watched all this with a strangely detached feeling of calm, the one he used when any emotion at all would be detrimental to his plan (the one he used in times of stress).

There were no vehicles, not even on the horizon. There were no cores to jump to. Light was stuck, unable to do anything - again.

'Fate seems to have it out for me at the moment.'

Higuchi was racing along top speed in his car. The sound of traffic and blaring horns blasted through his ears, but he ignored them. His hands sweated as they clutched the wheel.

"Have to get there... Have to get there..." His eyes bugged out as he stared at the road ahead, jerking the wheel to the left or right with his hands to avoid the cars.

*WHAM!* There was an almighty jolt and Higuchi jerked upwards in his seat.

"What the-l?" He pushed the button to roll down the window and looked out of it, back at the road. A speed bump was receding into the distance.

"What the hell are you doing, idiot? Are you trying to kill people?" Higuchi turned his head just in time to swerve and avoid a car that was blasting the horn. The driver made a couple of rude hand gestures, and Higuchi went back to slaughtering the speed limit, being careful not to hit any more bumps at a high speed.

Shooting straight through a red light, the mantra continued. "Must get there... Have to get there... Must get there... Have to get there..." Rem was watching the scene wide-eyed. The human Kyosuke Higuchi had finally snapped - there was no question about it, she could see it in his eyes. If she didn't do something soon, then the notebook would fall into L's hands and Misa... she didn't want to think about what would happen to Misa if L knew she was Kira. Just suspicion had been enough to destroy her freedom for weeks. Rem would never let that happen again, whatever it took.

And just outside Sakura TV, a handcuffed death row criminal was being lead back to the van. He thrashed and screamed as the officers tried to restrain him.

"He lied! He said I would be released! I did everything he said, ok? Let me go!"

"L promised you immunity from the death sentence. He's kept his word, your sentence is life imprisonment. Now shut up and get in the van."

Suddenly, the criminal stopped thrashing.

"You're right. I should go quietly... but I'm not going to!" He leveled a punch to one of the officer's kidneys, and they cringed in pain. The other pulled out a pistol but before they could even aim they were knocked unconscious with a blow to the head. The criminal slipped out of the handcuffs and grinned creepily.

"See, this is why they call me the Shadow. I just slip away... shut up, you. You're ruining my moment." And he picked up the pistol, clicking off the safety and shooting the other officer in the head, the one who had been struggling to his feet after the kidney punch. The Shadow looked down at the now corpse, then at the unconscious officer before shrugging.

"Well, one more homicide ain't gonna change anything. It's no skin off my back." and he shot the other man as well. Bending down, he dug through the pockets for his gun, and held it up to the light of a streetlamp, examining it. Both guns were exactly the same, police issue.

"Meh. They'll do. Let nobody say the Shadow can't handle a couple of guns at once. So... from what those incompetent idiots were chatting about, either Kira is coming here or killing me from afar... since I'm not dead yet I'll go with the first option. That means that L will be here too - that guy's way too arrogant, there's no way he wouldn't come in person to watch the solving of this, the greatest of all his precious cases. Heh. Two birds with one stone, I guess - now, I'd better scram before somebody checks out those gunshots." And, like a Shadow, the figure slipped away into the night.


	27. Chapter 27

_"Oh how we laughed and laughed_

_Except I wasn't laughing_

_Under the circumstances I've been shockingly nice"_

Higuchi's car screeched to a halt on the tarmac outside Sakura TV. The door opened and Higuchi all but charged out, heading for the doors. He banged loudly on the glass - they were locked.

"Idiots! Let me in!"

"Hey, it's not like they're actually going to do that, you know." A voice spoke from the darkness, and Higuchi looked around wildly trying desperately to pinpoint the source. "I'm up here, idiot."

Looking towards the heavens, Higuchi spotted a black shape on top of the Sakura TV building. Then whoever it was clicked on a flashlight, illuminating their face from below. Higuchi jumped in spite of himself. They looked grotesque in the light.

"Boo. Did I scare ya? Oh, poor iddle widdle Kira, reduced to being frightened by things that go BUMP in the night!" On the word 'BUMP', the figure whacked the roof with something he held in his hand, and a metallic clanging noise shattered the silence. Higuchi jumped again. "Jumping at shadows, are we? How pathetic. I thought the great Kira would be a little less of a coward." Then there was the click of a gun. "Don't move, unless you want to die very painfully."

Higuchi gave a start. "I know that voice! You were the one doing the broadcast!"

"So that's how far into obscurity I've sunk while rotting in prison these last seven years? I can do a broadcast to the nation and nobody recognises my voice? How despicable." The figure turned the torch so it shone properly on his face. "The Shadow, at your service."

Higuchi felt a glimmer of hope in his heart. This 'Shadow' person had shown him his face - and by extension, name. Aidan Tailor. Trying not to alarm the man, he reached carefully into his jacket pocket and pulled out a piece of the notebook and a pen.

"Stop right there, Kira. I'll shoot you if you even think about doing whatever you were about to do."

Suddenly, the noise of a helicopter deafened the area and both Higuchi and the shadow looked up. Out of the night sky, a chopper descended onto the tarmac. A voice came through a tannoy system, scrambled by a modifier.

"Kira. You are cornered. Lie face down on the floor with your hands above your head. This is L. If you resist, you will be executed here." The door to the helicopter opened and a figure in black wearing a helmet pointed a sniper rifle at Higuchi. "I repeat, lie face down on the floor with your hands above your head."

Higuchi looked at the helicopter, then at the top of the building. Then at the helicopter.

"I-if I do that, I'll die, I swear!"

"He's right, you know." came the Shadow's voice. The flashlight was once again off, so only a black shape was visible. "I'll kill him before you get anywhere near."

"Identify yourself." came the scrambled voice from the tannoy.

"Oh, little old me? Why, L, I go by the name Shadow - you know, that one? The one you put on Death Row seven years ago? The one you picked to do the stupid broadcast? You have a sick, twisted sense of humor, you know." There was another click of a gun. "Luckily, I just so happen to have two pistols here with me today - oh, and your pet sniper isn't wearing any armor? How sad. Did you maybe overlook the fact that Kira's power isn't the only way a person can die?"

'Watari!' Thought L desperately from within the car. The sniper outside spoke without the slightest waver in his voice.

"If that is what it takes to capture Kira, then I am more than willing to die for L." And he levelled the sniper rifle at Higuchi, who suddenly realised something.

"Neither of you can kill me, or the other one dies!"

"Oh, it's true. If you shoot Kira, little sniper, then you're as good as dead yourself. And if you shoot me - well, L, do you remember the last time the Shadow was wounded by a bullet? I think I still managed to kill three or four people before passing out, so shooting me is a death sentence - for you and for Kira." Higuchi gulped. "Yes, I have two guns up here, and I have no trouble killing two people at once! So, L, what's the plan now?"

There was a long second of silence. Then Higuchi spoke, strangely calmly.

"Aidan Tailor. If you shoot me, I can use my power to kill you." There was a gasp from the top of the building.

"How do you know my name?"

"I won't tell you. But if you shoot me, you're as good as dead."

Then it was the sniper's turn to speak up.

"And if you focus on shooting me, then Kira will also kill you while you are distracted. We are at a stalemate."

"But then, why don't you just go ahead and shoot Kira, little sniper? You'll die, but so will Kira, and I think it's a nice trade! What do you say?" The sniper's finger tightened on the trigger, the rifle still aimed at Higuchi. But then the scrambled voice of L spoke up again.

"I forbid it. Kira must be taken alive for questioning. We don't know yet how he kills. Do not shoot first." Laughter came from the top of the building.

"So it is a stalemate then? Tell me L, what are you waiting for? Backup from Sakura TV? I took care of them already. Corpses are inside and round the back if you want a look. You'll be getting no backup anytime soon. So... what should we talk about?"

"Shadow, your insanity has finally consumed you. Surely the best thing for you to do now is kill Kira, and let yourself be killed. That was your plan, wasn't it?"

"Not quite, L. Besides, I thought you didn't want Kira dead. Or were you just lying to protect your little sniper? Perhaps the little sniper is L, and you're trying to save your own hide. In either case, losing snipey here would really mess up all your well laid plans, wouldn't it?"

Quite how L managed to make a scrambled voice sound so cold and hateful was a mystery, but maybe the words had something to do with it.

"Yes, it would. If you murder him, I will use every resource I have to hunt you down to the ends of the earth and torture you so far past your breaking point you will be unable to even register your death because your mind will have been so destroyed by the intensity of your pain."

"Ooh, sounds fun. But not really my cup of tea - I prefer doing that to others. So... who wants to make the next move?"

There was silence for a long time.

"Oh, somebody do something, please? It's getting so boring! Ok, how about I ask Kira a few things, then? How the heck do you know my name? I thought you said you didn't recognise me!"

"Kira needs only a face to kill. Did they not tell you this in prison?"

"Shut up, L! I'm asking Kira!"

"I... I..." Higuchi was totally out of his depth.

"Stupid idiot's not gonna talk, is he? Well, then I have a few questions for you, L."

"I may or may not answer."

"Shut up! I've had it with your stupid logic! You killed my brother, as sure as Kira did! Don't make me angry, L, or I'll shoot both Kira and the sniper, damn the consequences!"

...Time is Passing...

By the side of the road, Light waited. He could do nothing else. Eventually, as was bound to happen, a car came past. From there it was a simple matter of using the SatNav to get to Cyberspace. Now, what to do?

The best thing about setting extra rules for yourself is that you can break them at any time. Light needed to get to where L was, fast. So, he used another of his backup plans.

Weeks ago, when the Kira case had just started, Tsuki had offered L a boiled sweet as a trust exercise. That wasn't all it was, however. It contained a tiny tracking device, totally undetectable, that would stick to the side of his stomach wall and transmit a signal. Light had put it there in case an emergency came up and now was the time to use it.

Light exited Cyperspace, and watched the stalemate for one minute. His brain was analysing all the possible scenarios.

'What do I need to avert? Watari's death, obviously, but Higuchi's?'

'How much can I reveal without being suspicious?'

'Should I tell L I'm here?'

Mind made up, he began to set up his plan.

L's earpiece suddenly spoke to him.

"L, it's Star."

"Evidence, now."

"My name is Light Yagami. Yours is-"

"-I believe you. Why did you disappear?"

"I was knocked out by the storm."

"Lightning?"

"This is no time for puns. When I say so, tell Watari to shoot the Shadow. I can handle Higuchi, plus prevent the shadow from shooting back."

"How long until you say?" That was it - no questions, just trust.

"Five minutes, tops. Keep stalling until then." L nodded, almost forgetting that Star wouldn't pick up on it.

"Okay. Good luck, Light."

Shadow was sitting at the edge of the roof, both guns ready to fire.

"You know, I think I might just shoot you both and be damned with it. Revenge is so sweet. But I can't decide which of you actually killed my brother. Both of you did, really. That's why you both deserve to die!"

The intercom crackled, and L's voice spoke up.

"So you have no altruistic motives? Have you not considered that you will be praised and cursed as the one who killed Kira?"

"You know, I hadn't considered that! But I don't really deserve all that attention - I mean, I'm sure that L did all the hard work, really. Would taking the credit from you count as revenge?"

"I have no interest in what the world thinks of me."

"Meh, whatever. Give me a bit more time to think."

Three minutes later, L heard Star's voice in his headset.

"Ten seconds, then call it whenever you want."

Fifteen seconds later, L's scrambled voice gave the order.

"Shoot Shadow, Watari." Watari twisted the gun around and fired, trusting L completely. The Shadow, still holding the guns, opened fire on both Watari and Kira as soon as he realised Watari had shot him.

Or, at least, he tried to. The guns clicked uselessly.

Light's power was the manipulation of electrical devices. A gun, in itself, required a spark to ignite the chamber and propel the bullet forward. Light made sure by using his manipulation that no such spark could start, effectively rendering the guns useless. Of course, with two guns this required immense timing, skill, and use of the Ghost World's stopped time, but he managed it. And as Shadow toppled off the roof, bleeding from a bullet wound in the heart, Light left and went back to Higuchi - Shadow had dropped the guns when he was still on the roof, so he could not retrieve them.

Higuchi watched the shooting, then snapped into action. He turned around and sprinted for the car, but was stopped by a throbbing pain.

"Aaaagggh!" He screamed as he collapsed, clutching his head. It was like someone was clawing inside his head for control, and doing it as painfully as possible.

Eventually, he succumbed to blackness. Watari and L both looked at the body, each thinking the same thing.

'Kira?'

Actually, Watari was thinking this, but L was thinking:

'Light has acquired Kira's killing power? This... is not good.' Panic began to rise as the implications of that became apparent. L ran out the helicopter and up to Higuchi, pressing two fingers to the man's neck to make sure he really was dead.

His heart was still beating - he had just spontaneously fallen unconscious. L's eyes widened and he searched his brain for anything that might explain this. Then he blinked, and looked around. His eyes settled on Higuchi's car, and he nodded to himself. He walked up to it and peered underneath.

"Hi!" said a little boy wearing red clothes. "Guess you found me, then. Took you long enough." He rolled out from under the car and got to his feet. "The name is Red, by the way, and I think you've probably guessed who I am by now. Hi, Watari!" He waved, and then inspected his hand, looking at the dirt and grease that coated it.

Then, Red walked over to Higuchi, inspecting him.

"Everything went fine, then. Hey L, when do you want him to wake up? I can time the sedative to end whenever you want, no aftereffects and everything."

"This is what you used on Raye Penber, Matsuda, and Ukita, wasn't it?" Red blinked up at L.

"You're sharp."

All this time, Watari was looking at the two genii in utter confusion. How had - actually, never mind. He would never understand exactly what went on in their brains.


	28. Chapter 28

_"One day they woke me up_

_so I could live forever_

_It's such a shame the same will never happen to you."_

"So, this is Kira? ...he's pathetic, honestly." Red walked up to Higuchi and snatched the scrap of paper off the floor, where it had fallen. "Just pathetic. The judger of criminals was just after money." He looked up, then stilled, eyes flicking to a patch of empty air, before he relaxed and grinned. "Heya, Rem. I guess you're pretty glad it's nearly over, huh."

A voice crackled through the tannoy on the helicopter.

"Tsuki? Is that you? Who are you talking to?" Red scowled.

"I'm not Tsuki. L killed Tsuki. I'm not dead. Follow my logic Soichiro-san?"

A figure stepped carefully out of the helicopter. Soichiro Yagami was a little taken aback at the confrontational tone, but tried not to show it.

"What's your name then? Why are you here? Who were you ta-"

"My name is Red, like I said. Only L knows why I'm here, and I intend to keep it that way. As for who I was talking to..." Red smiled and rummaged through Higuchi's jacket, pulling out a black notebook. "Hey L, watch his face. You're gonna love this." He chucked the notebook at Soichiro, who caught it on reflex.

"What is th- Oh my God! It's a monster! AAAAGGH!" Soichiro collapsed to the floor, pointing desperately at the patch of empty air. Red laughed.

"Oh, get it together, I didn't lose my dignity over that, and I'm a little kid. It's just a shinigami."

L, who had been watching the scene with interest, blinked in suprise.

"Shinigami? Do they exist?"

"Yup. Here, take this." Red held out the scrap of notebook paper he had been holding. "Touching the Death Note allows you to see Shinigami - at least, that's what we think." L touched the scrap and looked at the creature that had appeared from thin air.

"Your name is Rem?" he asked. The Shinigami nodded, then looked at Red.

"How did you know my name? And why are your numbers not-"

"Shut up about the name and numbers, or I'll tell him about the First Kira." Rem stopped dead, eyes wide and panicked.

"The First Kira?" L was listening intently to the conversation. Red got up from where he was sitting beside Higuchi.

"Yes, the First Kira. Yes, I know who they are. No, I'm not going to tell you - not unless Rem breaks her silence, that is." Light was thinking hard, his face betraying no part of the sudden emotional turmoil that broke out as twelve percent became sixty-three. "I take it I can count on your silence, Rem?"

Rem said nothing, simply glared angrily at Red.

"Oh, don't look like that. You know what happened the last time you tried to, so there's no use in a repeat result."

-Glare-

"Come on, L, you get Higuchi secure in the copter, and I'll hitch a ride with you back to headquarters." Red walked over to the fallen Soichiro Yagami, who was still staring wide-eyed at the Shinigami. "Notebook, please." When Soichiro did not move, Red bent down and picked up the Death Note - now he properly felt it, the cover had a dry slimy texture, like graphite. It was... odd. Hopping into the helicopter, he looked out the window at L, Watari and Soichiro.

"Are you coming or not? If you're not, I can get Star to pilot it remotely, but I don't think you want to be left behind here next to a corpse-filled building when the police arrive. No offense, L, but you look a little suspicious. Come on, get Kira and let's leave. Mogi, budge up."

Back at the Kira Task Force headquarters, and Light was sitting on the floor while Watari and Mogi heaved Higuchi into an interrogation cell. His hair was slightly damp from him taking a shower to remove the muck and grime that resulted from travelling many miles underneath a car (really, did Sol have to do that? When Light had given instructions to tail Higuchi, he hadn't meant it quite so... literally. Still, it was probably Light's own fault for not giving Sol any kind of driving lessons), and he was dressed in clean clothes that L had produced from a cupboard somewhere (Probably one of L's backup plans - as soon as he had figured out Star had another heir, he would have purchased all the supplies needed to host them.) He was concentrating very intently on a Rubix Cube that he had been given, mixing it up and then solving it, closing his eyes and solving it, solving it with one hand; closing his eyes, throwing it and catching it, and then attempting to solve it right by predicting the direction and duration of its spin while in the air - it was incredibly hard.

Eyes closed, Light became aware of footfalls heading in his direction. The next time he threw the cube up, it did not return to his hand. He looked up at L, who had already solved the cube.

"You remind me of someone I know." It was an odd statement to make, but Light knew exactly who L was referring to. He decided that revealing a little more wouldn't do any harm.

"Maybe so, but Star doesn't allow me to dress in pyjamas, although it would be nice." This was accompanied by a hair twirl, and L looked visibly taken aback. Then he crouched down so he was roughly level with Red's eyes.

"Matt is your link, I presume?"

"Yes. He's aware of us, and he agreed to help us in exchange for becoming Star's successor in case I die. That's how we found your name, by the way." Red held out his hand for the cube, but L shook his head.

"Close your eyes." Red obliged, and he heard a quick series of clicks as L messed up the cube before it dropped into his lap. "That's right, now solve it." Picking it up, he frowned as he considered how to solve it. Perhaps he was supposed to have heard how the cube was messed up from the clicks? Work out what each colour was from the texture? He could, of course, possess another object to get a look at the cube, but L would notice the body slumping and it would definitely be cheating...

How? It was impossible, but L expected him to...

Light sat there for at least two minutes, before he spoke.

"It's impossible, L." Then, larger hands clasped over his own and moved one finger to tap one of the squares.

"You took much longer than Near to ask for help. Twisted duck feet left, that square is the back." Light nodded, and L watched approvingly as he began to solve it. Once it was complete, Light opened his eyes, before narrowing them at L.

"You said it was right." The cube in his hands was not solved at all, although the pattern it had was rather pretty.

"I said it was left. Did you not hear me?"

"Before that. You said it was right."

"You are over-analysing my words."

"No, you set this as a test, to see whether or not I would pick up on it."

"You are, of course, correct. Near solved it the other way when I tested him. You two are not as similar as you might look. Near seems more passive, concerned only with doing the job as asked. You distrust others and rely on your own intuition, even when it seems to lead to wrong conclusions. You are unwilling to lose, but cheating is even more abhorrent to you. This, again, is a contrast with Near." Red tilted his head and looked at L intently.

"...I wouldn't have it any other way." He looked at the Rubiks cube before messing it up once more.

"Red, I want an honest answer to the next question, please."

"I won't lie, and I won't misdirect. I might withhold information or refuse to answer. Is that honest enough?"

"Yes." Clicks filled the silence of the room as Light idly worked on his puzzle, considering what the question might be. Information on the first Kira? Probably not - L was aware that would not be given so freely. Maybe an explanation of how he knew about the Death Note...

"Why did you follow us back to the investigation headquarters, Red?" The clicks stopped abruptly.

L was incredibly intelligent, on the same level as Light. He had picked up on the flawed logic. Damn. Well, he deserved a reward for it - Light would answer truthfully.

"I needed a shower." After a bit of persuasion, that was.

"You know perfectly well that isn't the real reason, and you've just confirmed my thinking that it's important."

"Fine. I came here for insurance against an outcome."

"What outcome?"

"Information withheld." Red's voice sounded almost robotic, and L picked up on the emotional turmoil he was feeling.

"Star felt the need to choose another successor before he sent you here. This outcome must be dangerous, and likely." L stared unblinkingly at Red, who stared unblinkingly back.

"Sixty three percent probability at the moment. If you like, I can keep you updated." L broke the stare to give a brief nod.

"Yes, that would be nice."

The quiet peace of the room was shattered when Mogi burst through the door.

"Ryuzaki! Watari sent me to get you. Higuchi is waking up!" L quickly stood up.

"Red?" Red was still sitting, frozen. His eyes were lifeless. "Red?"

"I'm fine, L. Just a bit tired." Light quickly got up and followed, trying not to show any annoyance at Sol, who had just contacted him to ask when he could leave Higuchi (how could he be so stupid? Leaving Higuchi for even a moment would cause him to stir!).

Higuchi woke up in a small cell. Immediately, he started testing for exits. There was one wall with bars on, but the spaces between them were no more than five centimetres. The only other things in the room were a seat (fixed to the floor), a small basin and a security camera watching from the top corner. He rounded on the camera.

"Let me out!" He cried. A voice crackled over the intercom, distorted by a scrambler. The voice of L.

"No. Kira, it is worthless to break out. The bars are reinforced steel and the lock responds only to an authorised fingerprint and voice scan. If you should escape, this building is also locked tight. Your killing notebook is with us, and you have no weapons of any sort. Confess now."

"No, I'm not Kira, I swear! This is some kind of a mistake!" Higuchi was beginning to panic. "Please, please, I'm not Kira, just let me go!"  
"Pathetic." This voice was not disguised, and Higuchi recognised it at once. He froze. "Kyosuke-kun, have you so readily forgotten what I told you?"

"...Red?..." He whispered in a trembling voice. The bloodshot whites of his eyes made him look like a crazed madman, and suddenly he was screaming.

"I'm Kira! I confess! Look, L, there's this notebook, okay?! I don't know how it got to me, it just appeared one day! You gotta believe me!" And he proceeded to tell L all about the Death Note, the Shinigami, and the Eye deal. Light listened in with a sensation very like smugness.

'It seems Beyond Birthday's Eyes are the same as this one's. I wonder how that happened - perhaps Rem will tell? No matter. It changes nothing now.'

Eventually, more than an hour later, the interrogation was nearing its end. The Death Note sat almost innocently on L's lap, open to a page near the front. There was only two things left to ask.

"Were you responsible for the murders committed at the beginning of Kira's killing spree?" The page of the notebook was at the break between two different handwriting styles. Light's eyes drifted away from the security camera screen and notebook to focus on the Shinigami, who had begun to fidget uncomfortably. L noticed Red's inattentiveness and decided to take advantage of it.

"Higuchi-san, how do you know Red?"

"I can't tell you." The words were strangely calm, as if rehearsed.

'They probably were.' thought Light, although he still did not look away from the Shinigami Rem. After all, he was still perfectly capable of listening.

"Higuchi-san, may I remind you that I have the permission of the International Police to extract a confession out of you by any means necessary. While I do not wish to resort to torture, I will not hesitate to use such methods. Would you like to revise the earlier statement?" L's tone of voice did not change, but the threat was made totally clear.

"No." L was taken aback.

"Higuchi-san, you are willing to confess to much greater crimes, but you will not tell of how you met one boy-"

"-He's not a boy." It was little more than a whisper, but both L and Red heard.

'Finally. He's beginning to crack.' It had taken a little longer than expected (apparently threats of eternal damnation were more effective than Light had calculated), but Higuchi was going to spill the beans about him. Or, at least, try to.

'So, Shinigami Rem, what will you do now? Are you willing to kill to protect Misa Amane?' This was a crucial test, and one he had been planning for a while. It would give Light a chance to observe first hand a Death Note killing, a way to confirm that the Shinigami possessed another Death Note (or at least a page torn out from the first one) and was able to kill, and it also tested the depth of loyalty Rem had to the first Kira.  
Behind him, Higuchi was speaking, and the task force (all of them, Soichiro, Mogi, Watari, Aiber, Wedy and L) were listening with rapt attention.

'Good. They're not watching the Shinigami.' Rem had taken out a black notebook and written something in it - Light didn't even need to guess what it was.

"I met Red yesterday. I was at a meeting, and when I came back he was just sitting on my desk. He told me he knew... knew I was Kira. He knew I'd be captured. He told me I was going to die. He said... he said he could see my lifespan. Within the week, he said. And then I... and then... oh my god, I can't say! I can't say anymore! Please don't make me!"

"Did Red have any way of proving his claims?"

"I... he doesn't... he's... Zero... Zero! His numbers! They're all Ze-aaargh!" Higuchi clutched at his chest and fell out the seat. He slumped on the floor and didn't move.

"Watari." L's voice was a command, and Watari did not hesitate, rushing into the room with his face uncovered, checking Higuchi for signs of life.

"He's dead." There was a hollow silence, nobody willing to speak. L looked at Red, then followed his gaze to the Shinigami.

"Rem-san, did you kill Kyosuke Higuchi?"

"Yes." There was no other explanation given. "Hand the Death Note back to me. I will leave now. If you do not comply I will be forced to kill you too." Wordlessly, L held out the notebook, and the Shinigami took it, before vanishing through a wall.

Laughter pierced the silence. Red's eyes were bright, almost insanely, as he giggled. The members of the task force looked, horrified, at him.

"Forty-two seconds from starting to write down a name. Maybe that's the answer!" One by one, the task force began to smile as the reality sank in. Kira was defeated!

"Forty-two seconds?" L asked curiously. "The Shinigami Rem possesses a second Death Note? Red nodded. Then the laughter dropped off his face.

"The first Kira is still out there. Hopefully Rem will persuade them not to resume their activities, or even not give them the notebook at all. You will have to keep watch for more Kira killings."

"Red-kun, why was Higuchi-san so threatened by you, and why did he say your numbers were Zero?" Red looked at L, tilted his head, and smiled innocently.

"Numbers? What numbers? I don't see any."


	29. Chapter 29

_"You've got your short sad life left_

_That's what I'm counting on..._

_I'll let you get right to it_

_Now I only want you gone."_

"Misa, I have the notebook."

"That's great, Rem! Now I can properly become Kira!"

"Misa, if you do this, then I cannot keep you safe from L. He has touched the death note, so I cannot allow him to see me with you."

"That's fine, Rem! If L gets close enough to see me I'll know his real name, won't I? I'll get him then!"

"Misa, you do not have the Shinigami eyes."

"I'll just trade for them again then!"

"No, Misa! You can't!"

"Why not? Don't I own the notebook now, right?"

"...Yes." L had worn gloves when handling it, so had not become the owner.

"Well then, I can! Come on Rem, don't be such a worrywart. I'll be fine!"

"Very well, Misa. If it is what you truly want, then I will give them to you."

"Of course it's what I want, Rem. My parents were killed, and I became Kira to avenge their deaths. Somewhere out there, there are people like I was, who have been wronged and want nothing more than to see justice done. I will help them, even if it kills me." Rem bowed her head.

"I'm sorry, Misa. I wasn't there for you."

"Don't worry about it, Rem. Now, let's get the eyes again!"

It took exactly thirteen hours, thirty two minutes from the time Higuchi's heart stopped for the next Kira killing to occur. Light timed every second of it, watching the program L had set up to monitor the news channels with a sort of focused intensity that scared away the other members of the task force - it was unnatural to see that look on anyone, much less a six-year old.

"L." It was almost a whisper when he finally did speak, but L's head whipped around as if he had shouted. "The first Kira is back."

"You knew, didn't you." Red looked round at L, and nodded. "Was this the outcome you were worried about?"

"Close to it, yes. It's ninety-four percent now."

"Will you say what it is?"

"You'll find out soon enough." Red looked almost sad.

"Red, did something happen between you and Star?" Red tilted his head.

"What do you mean, L?"

"The person Star sent first was Tsuki-kun. He seemed better in control of his emotions and more of a favourite. You seem like the second in line, the spare - like what Mello is to Near."

"That is very true. Tsuki controlled his emotions better."

"Tsuki's death must have somewhat affected you." At this, Red smiled - it was slightly eerie, thought L.  
"Not much. Death doesn't affect me. But I don't want to talk about this anymore." He made an odd signing movement with his hands.

-Blank-

When L returned to consciousness, Red was gone. Instantly, he felt his neck for any puncture wounds. There was one, on the right side just below the chin. 'Wha... oh.'

Everything clicked into place, and a new theory was formed. Star, whoever he was, had access to some kind of robotically controlled bug. It was that which administered the sedative, which explained many of the 'supernatural' abilities. If he had a mechanical aid on site, under his total control, then suddenly it became clear how he did things. And the bird... the raven, Sol. That was mechanical as well? It all made sense.

'Such technology would be so advanced... it's a wonder that Light could create it right under my nose without me noticing.' After all, L kept a very careful watch on those types of things. 'Still, I suppose Light is skilled enough to hide anything from anyone.'

Up in the room L had given over to his use, Light let a drawing pin fall from his hand into the bin. There was a tiny pinprick of blood on the end.

"Hopefully, that theory will keep him occupied long enough." The deception was weighing on him, and that scared Light. It was getting worse.

"Everyone," L announced a few hours later, "I suggest we arrest Misa Amane and take her into custody as our prime suspect." There was a chorus of groans from the task force.

"L, we already did that. Besides, you yourself said that she was in the clear." Mogi was clearly against the idea.

"I did not say that. I said Misa was not a suspect for the Second Kira. That is understandable, because the First Kira and the Second Kira cannot be the same person, or there would not be two Kiras."

"Ryuzaki..."

"Mogi-san, you will move in to arrest her immediately. We must use the element of suprise. Yagami-san, you will accompany him. Watari will arm you each with a tranquiliser gun-"

"No! Ryuzaki, I am not doing that to an innocent civilian again! It was bad enough the first time! Can't you just let whatever grudge you have against Misa go? Or maybe you are just a pervert!" Soichiro was obviously very upset.

Light said nothing. It's not like he was able to - Red was lying in bed upstairs, supposedly asleep. L had wanted to wake him up to question him more but Watari had stopped him, because expecting a six-year old to stay up for a whole night and then remain awake the next day was apparently asking too much. It allowed him to get a more objective viewpoint on the situation, at least.

Eventually, L was able to persuade the others to kidnap the actress again, and the plan was set. It was now Sunday morning. Misa would be taken at the first possible opportunity - that afternoon. Misa usually went for a walk around town before eating, and they would search her home. If incriminating evidence was found, she would be imprisoned. If it was not, L would leave her alone. It was the closest thing to a compromise that Mogi and Soichiro were able to make. Light merely accepted the situation and began to plan around it.

At five thirty, Misa left her home, stepping out into the evening light and walking down the street. The clouds were beginning to gather again, and it looked like the storm would worsen again that night. Aiber and Wedy entered the house and began to methodically search it. Mogi and Soichiro began to tail Misa in case she tried to escape.

_"Careful what you do._

_'cause God is watching your every move."_

Misa began to sing, almost absent mindedly. Mogi looked at Soichiro.

"Does she know we're here?" He whispered.

"I don't think so."

_"Hold my hand in the dark street_

_for if you do_

_I'll know that I'll be safe."_

The two agents watched, transfixed.

_"Even if I'm far away and alone,_

_I can be sure that you'll find me there._

_This I know."_

It was almost as if she knew... somehow... the terrible things that would befall her after this moment of calm.

_"You draw me close for a while, so quiet._

_You tell me everything. If I forget what you say, then you'll come to me, and tell me again..."_

Misa walked out onto a bridge over the river. She turned to the side, leaning over to watch the sunset.

_"Yes you'll tell me once again..."_

The fading light reflected off the water, casting a dappled pattern on the side of the bridge. Her shadow stretched out behind her, and the wind ruffled her dress as she spoke into the dying sun.

_"But what happens when I know it all..._

_Then what should I do after that? What then?"_

Her eyes shone with tears as she turned and walked off to her house. Mogi and Soichiro had no choice but to return too, taking a shortcut to get there ahead.

Aiber was waiting for them at the front door. Wordlessly, he held up a black notebook. Mogi gasped.

"No..."

"Yes." Wedy nodded from behind Aiber. "It was under her pillow. She didn't have time to hide it."

"L was right, then." Soichiro felt numb as he spoke.

"L is always right with his deductions, Yagami-san. Aiber and I realised that a long time ago."

It was a relatively simple matter, for a kidnapping. Nothing like the terror-filled night of Higuchi Kyosuke's. No, this was easy, and smooth. Misa had no chance to fight, and she seemed to accept it. Could she have known it was coming? No, surely if Rem had told her she would have made at least some attempt to resist. But the task force had to wonder if, deep down, she had known all along, and already accepted her fate.

Half an hour earlier...

"Rem... Shinigami Rem, can you hear me?" Rem stopped short. Hanging low in the air over the city, just above Misa's house, she looked down at the ground. Who had called? How had they known her name?

"So... you can hear me? That's interesting. Shinigami... Death Gods... it would make sense, even if the cores aren't quite the same."  
"Who are you?" As Rem spoke, she felt the emotion of smugness filter through from somewhere.

"Who am I? Rem, I'm truly wounded that you cannot recognise my voice."

And suddenly Rem knew.

"Tsuki... Yagami?!"

"Yes. Follow me, we need to talk." There was a tugging pull in the direction of the northern suburbs, away from the city. Rem tried to shake it off.

"No. I can't leave Misa."

"You really think L would make a move so soon? No, come with me. I know you want to know who and what I am. I thought this break from the case would provide a good opportunity to tell you." Rem was torn between her curiosity and her loyalty. She glanced down at the small house Misa lived in, and then made up her mind.

"One hour, no more." Not because she was deserting Misa, no. It was for the good of the Shinigami realm that she learn what this mysterious spirit by the name Tsuki was. And also... as a reward from the Shinigami king for finding the information, she could ask for Misa's lifespan to be extended.

"Follow." And so Rem flew, away from Misa and the Task force building, following the mysterious tug across town, like one would follow a compass needle. Eventually she stopped in front of a greyish building with a roof of corrugated iron.

"A warehouse, as the humans call it. Go inside. I will be waiting for you." The presence left her mind, and she drifted in through the door.  
Light was waiting for her inside. He sat in the centre of the large, dilapidated building. Creaks came from the fan on the wall as the whole structure trembled in the wind that was beginning to pick up outside. Below him, the wooden floor was stained with the tiniest hint of red. He traced a finger along one of the floorboards, then looked up.

"So... Rem. I called you here to learn. But first, I guess I have to answer your questions. What do you want to know about me?"

"...Tsuki Yagami. Your lifespan shows zeros. When your name was written in the Death Note, you did not die. What are you?"

"I don't know myself, but I will explain as best as I can. First of all, my name is not Tsuki. It may be spelled that way, but it's pronounced 'Light'." Inspecting his finger, Light's mind flashed back to a few months ago, when he had left a dead body lying in a pool of blood.

"Twelve years ago, I was a human being. I was watching a meteor shower when one hit me and killed me. I still have the burn scar, although it is covered by makeup to hide my identity. It never healed. I died then."

What despair and sadness the man must have felt as he lived out his death-day here, all alone.

"But I didn't pass on. The meteorite was special. My body never decayed, and I became a spirit doomed to haunt the earth for all eternity." Light wondered absently how long it had taken for somebody to find the body.

"I discovered I could manipulate things. At first it was just she shell of my body, but gradually my powers increased. I could talk to machines. Well, not exactly. I could immerse myself in the flow of electricity, and divert its course." Probably not more than a week. The smell would have attracted anyone near.

"At first it was just simple things: Turning lights on and off, things like that. Over time, I got better. I learned to think in binary, and form complex instructions by manipulating small strands of current flow. It's second nature to me now." For some odd reason, sitting where a dead body in a pool of blood once was... gave Light a strange sense of deja vu. Like he had done it sometime before - but his memory was photographic, there was no chance of that.

"That's my life. The meteorite grants powers to any life forms that die within its area of effect. I became immortal, invulnerable. I detached myself from the humans. Do you want to know anything else?"

"So, you were destined to die then?" Light gave a shrug.

"Maybe, maybe not. I don't have Shinigami eyes, so I wouldn't have been able to tell. But now, Rem, I have some questions for you."

"Light Yagami, what makes you think I will tell you anything?"

"Just a hunch. You and I... we're not that different. Silent watchers, cut off from the world." Rem looked at Light. Light looked at Rem. "Please. I want to know."

"Very well." And so Rem told Light all about Shinigami, and their world. She didn't mean to reveal it all, but somehow she did. Light watched and listened, soaking up the information like a sponge. At all the right moments he nodded, smiled, motioned for her to do on. Over an hour had passed before she finally finished.

"One more question, Rem. Would it be possible for you to tell me L's lifespan?"

"I've told you, it's forbidden..."

"I'm not human, though. It should be alright, right? I'll tell you what, give me a rough estimate. He's not going to die in the next week, is he?"

"...No."

"That's all I wanted to know." Somewhere, past the layers of logic and rationality, a small piece of Light's heart lifted ever so slightly. "One more thing. Misa's lifespan. How is she doing?"

Rem balked. For the first time, she seemed almost scared. The way Light stared intently at her was... creepy. There was a strange look in his eyes that she had missed before. Suddenly, she realized.

"What have you done with Misa?!"

"Me? Nothing. I just took you out of the way for a while." Rem flew for the door, but Light called out before she could phase through.

"It's too late, Shinigami Rem. L will have her locked up securely by now." The daylight was gone, and in the gloom of the dark warehouse Light could just make out the figure of Rem pulling out a dark notebook. "That won't work either. If the task force die, Misa will be left alone to starve to death in a cell. You wouldn't want that, would you?"

"You traitor." Rem's voice was harsh and cold. "I trusted you."

"Well, learn a lesson then: don't trust so easily. It's a human trait. I thought as a Shinigami, you might be above all that. It seems I was mistaken." Then Light clicked on a torch, stood up, and ran out, pausing only to look back at the grief-stricken Shinigami who was frozen in place.

"You would make a good human, Rem. That was not a compliment." Then he dashed off into the fading dusk.


	30. Chapter 30

_"Goodbye my only friend._

_Oh, did you think I meant you?_

_That would be funny if it weren't so sad."_

Light ran all the way back to headquarters, not stopping for breath (he didn't need to) or to check his direction. He knew his way back to the task force without look at signs or maps.

He wasn't running from Rem, upset or guilty about what he had just done. He was merely in a hurry to return - after all, the next few hours would be crucial, and Light didn't want to miss anything.

When he only had a few hundred more metres to go, a rumble of thunder resounded through the dark sky, and soon after the rain began to pour down in buckets. The eye of the storm was over.

"Red-kun?" Mogi looked at Red, taking in the drenched state of his clothes. "Why are you all wet?"

"I went for a walk and got caught in a rainstorm." Red kept walking, giving no indication that he wanted to talk about it. "Where is L?"

"Ryuzaki-san is upstairs, waiting for Misa - sorry, Kira - to wake up."

"Could you go and tell him that we're expecting a visitor soon? He'll need to be down here." Mogi looked offended to be sent on an errand by a child.

"Why can't you tell him?"

"I could, I just don't want to. I have been running about in the rain, you know. Maybe I'm cold and tired and don't feel up to it?"

"O-oh, right. Ok... I'll go get L, I guess." Mogi looked sheepish as he quickly went off to get the detective. Light had to resist the urge to roll his eyes.

…Time is passing…

"Red-kun, when do you think Rem will arrive?" were the first words out of L's mouth as he did his awkward walk-shuffle into the room.

"It could be any time now. For as time I thought I wouldn't be able to return before she did."

"She?"

"The Shinigami is female."

"Star-kun has been doing his research, hasn't he? Did he send you to talk to her so she would be out of the way this afternoon?"

"What tipped you off?"

"A message telling me not to worry about the Shinigami's interference. It was not hard to determine that he had a plan. Also, I noticed your disappearance, even if the other members of the Task Force did not. You underestimate me if you think me incapable of putting two and two together."

"You're right, as usual."

"Where is Misa! What have you done to her!" In sync, L and Red turned their heads to face the murderously glaring phantom that had appeared in the corner of the room. Red motioned with a thumb to the interrogation chamber, where the girl was bound and blindfolded.

"Misa… are you alright? Are you hurt?"

"Rem… Rem, is that you? I'm fine…I guess. L hasn't hurt me yet." Misa's voice was muffled, and the last word came out as a kind of choked sob through the gag.

"We are currently trying to determine what to do with the first Kira. Obviously, the death penalty is mandatory in murder cases such as this one, but as Kira's crimes are international, many countries will want to lay claim to her execution. I am considering whether to execute her in secret or to release her over to the United Nations, deprived of her murder weapon of course, so that a public execution can be arranged." Light picked up almost immediately on the bluff in L's statement - there was no way the last part would ever take place. Rem did not seem to do the same.

"If you do that to her… I will kill you. All of you. I would rather have her starve to death in this cell than be stripped of her dignity and murdered like that."

"So you would be fine with a private execution, then? We could find a painless method, I'm sure. Perhaps even using the Death Note – it would be best for her to die as she lived." And there was the compromise. Light appreciated L's bargaining skills, but from what Rem had told him just a short while ago, it wasn't going to work.

"No. You will release her."

"I cannot. Kira cannot be allowed to roam free."

"It Misa dies, your life is forefeit, L Lawliet." L's eyes went wide and he spun around. Nobody else but Red was in the room with him, who didn't seem bothered.

"Star will take care of the security cameras." He was absentmindedly fiddling with his sopping wet clothes. "I knew it already."

"Red-kun, do you have any input?"

"Just kill Kira. The lives of this task force put together aren't worth sparing her."

"You would say that even with Soichiro and yourself on the task force?"

"Star was never really attached to his dad, plus I'm expendable."

"Am I also expendable?"

"Maybe. You have successors."

"Star won't."

"He won't die."

"Regardless, I do not think the best course of action at the moment is to do something which would get us all killed. The world cannot afford to lose L." Red looked very hard at L, for a long time. Then he spoke softly.

"You're scared of death, aren't you?" L paused, checking nobody could see, and then nodded ever so slightly. "Ok, then. How's this for a plan." Red turned to look at Rem.

"The entire task force will gather and decide what to do. Then, we will have a majority vote – if L wins, then Misa will go free. If I win, then Misa will die. That should prevent you from killing us while there is still hope for Misa's life." Rem's eyes flashed with hate, but she kept silent.

"L, let's get the task force."

"Red-kun, just because I do not want to die does not mean that I think Kira should live."

"L, don't argue with me about this now. We haven't got much time." For a split second, L almost thought he heard a hint of panic in Red's voice.

"…very well. I'll call everyone here. But don't expect me to decide."

Predictably, the split was three-on-three. Red, Mogi and Soichiro wanted to kill Misa, even if it killed them. Watari, Aiber and Wedy put the lives of the task force above justice.

'Typical.' Thought Light. 'L still hasn't decided, and now he has the deciding vote.'

The arguments became heated. Aiber, in particular, was desperately trying to convince the others that they could not kill the world's greatest detective just because they wanted one person dead. He even rounded on Red, trying to persuade people that his vote didn't count because of his young age.

"My vote counts more than yours, because my vote is Star's vote. Do not ever make the mistake of treating me like a child, Aiber. In my life I have experienced horrors beyond what your complacent mind could imagine. If you really insist on depriving me of my vote, then I will simply find an alternate means to kill Misa Amane." Aiber seemed unnerved by the murderous glare on Red's face, then turned away to pressure Soichiro.

The argument went on. L looked at the plate of sweets in front of him, then to Soichiro; then to Red, then back to the sweets. He made a discrete flicking motion with his hand, and then quietly stood up and shuffled out. Wedy and Watari noticed, but did not follow. Red waited a few moments more, then silently slipped away.

The storm was still battering the building, the howling winds providing a cacophony of background noise as Red followed L upwards, towards the roof. When he reached it, L was already some distance away, standing just underneath the satellite dish on the roof, looking out over the blackened skies.

"L, why did you come out here?" L looked around, then cupped one hand to his ear as if he had not heard. "I know you can hear me, L. Don't try and fool me that way." L smiled and repeated his gesture.

Light sighed, looking down at his still-damp clothes. It wouldn't really hurt to get them wet again, would it? He stepped out into the freezing shower to join L. Reaching him, he stood by the man's side.

"Does Light-kun want me dead?" The question came as a surprise to Red, and he struggled to answer.

"I don't think so."

"That contingency plan you said you were preparing for. Will you tell me what it is?" Red shook his head, sending droplets of water flying off his hair.

"No. But I can't see a way not to use it now."

"Does this plan involve me being killed by Rem, along with the rest of the task force? Star mentioned a while back of a device that would restart your heart if you died. Is it that?"

"...not quite, but you're close. L, can I get your opinion on something?"

"What is it?"

"Would a Shinigami lie?"

"Why would you ask? Has Rem said something you do not believe to be true?"

"I'm not sure." But Misa... sometime soon, but when?

"By trying to execute Misa, you are trying to determine exactly when she will die. Am I right, Red?" Light paused, then spoke in a quiet voice.

"...yes." After all, Misa's death-time was unchangeable. Nobody's was, the Shinigami had said so. So if they didn't decide to execute her, she would still die at the same time, they just wouldn't know when it would be.

"What will you do with that information?" Red looked straight at L. Streams of water flowed down his face, almost like he was crying. He wiped them away, but the rain replaced them.

"I see. Well then, good luck." L began to turn away, but then stopped. "Can you hear that, Red-kun?"

Light listened, but there was nothing besides the noise of the storm.

"It's the bells. They're louder now. I've been hearing them all day." L put his thumb to his lips as he thought. "On and on and on. It sounds like the bells of a church. Maybe there's a wedding, or maybe..."

"L, what are you trying to say?" whispered Red, voice almost lost by the wind.

"Oh, nothing. Don't listen to me. Half of what I say doesn't make any sense. Let's go inside, Red-kun. Light-kun won't like you being out here in this cold."

There was silence inside the empty room, broken only by the dripping of water. At the bottom of the steps was a puddle of rain, which had run from the waterlogged clothes of Red. He was currently drying himself with a towel.

"Here, let me help you." Light felt his hair being ruffled as L sacrificed his own towel to help him dry off.

"You don't have to do that, you know. Save it for yourself."

"But you might actually get dry. No matter how many towels I use, I don't think I'll ever get rid of this water."

"Thank you then." Suddenly, L's phone bleeped.

"Watari? Have you reached a decision? Thank you." L put the phone back in his pocket (it was obviously waterproof). "Aiber has convinced the task force not to kill Misa Amane."

Red let out a long, slow breath.

"Okay. You go there now. I have one last thing to do."

"I will. Good luck, Light." It was not until L had left the room that Light realised L had been talking to the cameras and not to him.

"So the compromise is this - Misa will relinquish control of her Death Note, and spend the rest of her life in a prison for her crimes. We will tell interpol that Kira is dead, but not reveal his identity." The rest of the task force nodded in agreement with Aiber.

L looked around. That sounded ideal... but Light and Red seemed so sure of Misa Amane's death..

"Very well. That is what we'll do." There was silence for a long time, before Mogi spoke.

"So... is that it? Kira case solved? We can go back to our normal lives again?" One by one, the people in the room began to smile, even to laugh with utter relief. They had done it! Kira was no more, and they were still alive!

Idiots. Humans.

They were so trusting, so naive. Not once did they ever think to look down, so obsessed they were with the buoyant success of what they felt they had achieved. When a six-year-old boy in red clothes entered the room, they paid him no notice at all.

Red walked through the door and up to Ryuzaki. There was a flash of silver as, with one swift motion, he drew a dagger from his robes and stabbed L Lawliet in the heart.


	31. Chapter 31

_"Why do people..._

_...betray each other?_

_If you can't trust anyone..._

_...then everyone should just _die_."_

Everything stopped, almost frozen. L's eyes widened in blank shock and utter incomprehension as the spoon he had held fell from his fingertips. It made an arc downwards through the air, spinning slowly towards the floor, before finally hitting it with a soft clatter that reverberated throughout the silent room.

A red stain that could only be blood spread quickly through L's soaking shirt, mixing with the water to give a swirling blotch of scarlet. His legs gave out from under him as he collapsed to the floor, looking with incredulity at the dagger that was pinned at the source of the crimson flow. His eyes slowly moved up to Red, who was staring at him. They shared a look for what seemed like an eternity, L's face not changing, but somehow communicating, silently, his thoughts.

'So, this is it. You win our game, then?'

Red nodded at the unspoken question, gazing down at the bloodied and defeated form of his rival, before taking a step away and spinning around to face the others. Behind him, L's eyes slowly closed, and his body relaxed in death. It was eleven forty. The clock on the wall ticked away the seconds.

"L! NO!" Watari was the first to snap out of the trance they had been held in. He dashed with speed one would think impossible from an old man, towards L's body, his hand reaching into his pocket to pull out a gun. Red made a hand sign and he fell to the floor, clutching his head, before slowly clambering to his feet.

The rest of the task force were still frozen with incredulity and fear, but Light could tell from their expressions that they were waiting for their leader's assistant to tell them what to do. Watari straightened up, bringing out his pistol and pointing it... at the task force.

"If any of you move, I will not hesitate to shoot," he said in a voice not his own. "your lives do not matter to us now."

Aiber swallowed and recovered his voice.

"So, Watari-san, Red-san, you have decided to betray us? What for? Watari, what would L have thought if he saw you now? It would be best for all of us if you lowered the gun and surrendered." His speech was in a charming tone, but Light could hear how forced he was making it. Aiber was out of his depth, and he knew it.

"No." Red looked straight at Aiber. "Among many other things, it would not help you. Everyone here is going to die very soon. A matter of hours, in fact. Quite apart from that... Sol, give the gun to Mogi, then knock out Watari and switch to him. I want to demonstrate something." Watari walked up to Mogi, then handed his pistol over. Mogi looked incredulously at the gun, for a second not believing that it had been that easy... then he took aim at Red.

"Give me one good reason I shouldn't shoot you right now for killing L." His voice and hand trembled as he held the gun, but there was little doubt that he would go through with his threat. Red raised an eyebrow at him.

"This." He signed with his hand.

Mogi gave a scream of pain as Watari slumped forwards onto the ground. His arms spasmed and his eyes blanked. His finger unwittingly tightened on the trigger. The gunshot pierced the tension of the room, and he too fell forward. He had shot himself in the leg.

"Mogi!" Soichiro ran to him. "Mogi, are you alright?" Mogi swatted the hand on his shoulder aside, and stood up. Blood was still gushing from the wound on his leg, but he seemed not to feel it. He pointed the gun at Soichiro, who took a few steps back in shock. "Mogi, what-"

"Total control." Red's voice had an eerie childlike cheerfulness to it. "That's not the Mogi you know, Soichiro-san. Say hello to Sol. Watari should be waking up soon, so I guess we'll wait for him. I hate repeating myself."

"Mogi, answer me!"

"I am not Mogi." Sol stood, impassively, gun still pointed at Soichiro. "There are enough bullets left to kill all of you. Star-sama would prefer me not to use them, but do not make the mistake of thinking I won't." The blood was still flowing in rivulets down his leg, and his face was pale. He did not tremble, nor falter in the slightest. It was as if he could not feel the pain. It was... inhuman.

"What did you do to Mogi!"

"Oh, I did nothing, Soichiro. Besides, you'd best be concerned more with your own fate. A fate that will be shared by your... friend" he spoke the word almost with distaste "here."

It was eleven forty-five.

"W-who... are you? What are you?" Aiber was clearly very frightened - he didn't even bother keeping the panic from his voice.

"What am I? A good question, and one I don't know the answer to myself." Red laughed. "It doesn't matter for you, anyway. Everyone in this room is either dead or will be shortly. Let's just say... heart attacks will probably be the cause."

"You wrote our names in the Death Note."

"Observant, Wedy. But no - I'm afraid I'm not going to be your cause of death. Now, L... why I killed him? I can see the question written so clearly on all of your frightened little faces. It's simple. I killed him so I could kill him." There was an insane glint in his eyes, which seemed to almost glow with a luminous red light.

"That's not a reason!"

"Control yourself, Soichiro, or I'll be forced to do the controlling. I wanted to be L's cause of death. When he died, I wanted him to know it was by my hand, and not by the pen of some stupid Shinigami who thinks herself human enough to throw away her life avenging one."

"You betrayer." Soichiro's eyes filled with hate. "I hope you rot in hell."

"Keep on hoping. Soichiro, do you know who Star is?"

"He ordered you to do this, didn't he! Where is that bastard!" Red laughed again - a high, piercing ringing sound.

"Bastard. Oh, that's ironic. You see, Star's real name is Light Yagami."

You could have heard a pin drop in the silence that followed. Aiber and Wedy turned their heads to look at Soichiro, who seemed struck dumb.

It was eleven fifty.

"Yagami? Is this 'Light' related to you, Soichiro-san?" Aiber asked. Soichiro stuttered out a reply.

"H-he's my s-son... No, that can't be! You're lying! You have to be!"

There was a groaning noise from Watari as he began to stir. The awkward fall must have broken a limb, maybe. Red knelt down and placed a finger to the old man's mouth.

"Shush. You haven't missed much - well, quite a lot actually, but you'll pick up on it soon enough." He stood back up. "It's true, Soichiro. Don't you ever wonder what happened to Light that night? Disappeared out the window without the slightest trace; was never seen again. You never speculated? Light was a genius, after all - it would have been so easy for him to just... go. Family only ever held him back. Ask Watari if you don't believe me."

"Watari?" The man's eyes focused on Soichiro as his name was called. He still seemed a little out of it - concussion? It didn't matter.

"L had a theory based off DNA analysis from Tsuki and Red. Star later confirmed it."

Soichiro dropped to his knees, burying his head in his hands, and gave himself over to tears. Red looked on without empathy or compassion.

"This is... this is... all my fault..."

"Red. You said that we were going to die soon." Red tilted his head at Aiber's question.

"Yes. I would say..." he checked his watch, "five minutes. Did you have a last request you wanted?"

"Let Wedy and I leave this room so we can die somewhere else. We both accepted our fates, long ago, ever sice we agreed to be L's shields. But we would like some time together... one last time, alone."

"Sure. I'm not keeping you." He motioned for them to leave, and Aiber dragged Wedy out. An odd request, but Light would not begrudge them that. While humanity was pathetic in life, weak and scared and easily led by manipulation of the mind and heart, in the face of death they showed qualities that Light himself was unable to understand. Light supposed he never would. He never would die.

Rem was staring at Misa, watching the count tick down. Twelve hours to go. She paid heed to nothing else but the girl bound up in front of her. Somewhere, muffled by the walls, she heard a clock begin to chime.

"Rem, are you still there?"

"Of course, Misa. I will never leave you."

"Thank you, Rem. I know I can always rely on you to be- Aah!" She slumped. Rem caught her.

"Misa!" With horror, she watched the numbers above Misa's head wink out. "No, but she had time... he did this. Light Yagami. You. Carry the blame for all eternity. YOU HEAR ME!" Rem shouted to the empty cell, still holding the dead Misa in her arms. "And now... as revenge... I will kill the people you love about most." She withdrew her Death Note and began to write.

Kanzo Mogi

Tierry Morello

Merrie Kenwood

Soichiro Yagami

L Lawliet

And lastly, she wrote her own true name. Written in a language no human could understand, and known to no other Shinigami but her, it was the one thing which she was forbidden to write in the notebook. No sooner had she completed it then she began to crumble into dust. The clock struck for the twelfth and final time, its chime fading away into the black silence. It was midnight.

Red looked back at Watari. The man seemed to be half delusional from the concussion he had sustained from possession and from his fall - there would be no interesting conversation there. Sol was... Sol. It needed no explanation - the spirit was still standing, utterly still, waiting Light's command. That left one person.

"Soichiro." Red did not get a reply. "Soichiro." The man did not say a thing. "Soichiro." Red walked over to him, and put a hand on his shoulder. Leaning in close, he whispered three words. Soichiro turned to look at him.

"Is it true?" His voice was cracked and broken, and his eyes were bloodshot from crying. Despite this, they held a strange peace, almost acceptance of their fate.

"Yes. Now sleep, father." He gave one last nod, then lay back on the floor, waiting for his death.

It was exactly forty seconds past midnight when Soichiro and Watari simultaneously gave painful grunts and breathed their last.

"So... It's just you and me, Lawliet." Making his way back to the body of the world's greatest detective, he sat among the pool of blood which had formed around the corpse. It soaked into his clothes, dying the Red brighter, matching the shade of his glowing eyes in the dark. Dipping his left thumb and index finger in L's blood, he pressed it gently to the man's forehead, forming a bloody brand in the shape of one letter.

L for Loser.

"I win." And then Light Yagami began to laugh, his voice echoing through the halls of the task force building, heard by no living creature, only by the dead. "I win, L."

-GAME OVER-


	32. Chapter 32

_"Just as planned."_

"How dramatic, Red-kun." L's eyes opened to see Red standing over him, looking a little sheepish. That didn't stop self-satisfied grin that he wore on his face, which masked the tiniest hint of relief.

"Dramatic it may be, but it's true, L. I have won our game."

"Yes, I concede defeat. Now, please tell me; how am I still alive?" L looked down at his chest, where the dagger was still stuck in his shirt. The flow of blood had stopped. He reached an arm out to pull it free, but a tiny hand clasped his wrist and stopped him.

"Don't do that. Let me." Red took hold of the knife and twisted it sharply counter-clockwise. There was a loud cracking noise, and then he pulled it free. The knife itself had no tip, as if it had broken off inside the wound. Speaking of which...

L was staring in astonishment at the hole in his chest through the tattered, blood-soaked remains of his shirt. It was closing up. His very flesh was regenerating before his eyes. Soon, all that was left was a scar, ugly and deformed, but far better than the gaping tear that had been there just a few seconds ago.

"How... but that's impossible? I had thought the absence of pain was due to a sedative, but this... Red-kun, does Light-kun make use of nanotechnology?" It was the only explanation, but Red shook his head.

"No. I'll explain later. With that scar, you're starting to look like me. Come on, get up." Red hopped away and stood up, looking around the room. "Sol, go get some cleaning supplies and start clearing this mess up. And some new clothes. L, you look like Beyond Birthday in that shirt."

"Red-kun, I would like an explanation as to why I am alive. What exactly was the tip of that dagger made from?"

"L, you still haven't realised?" Red took L's hand again, and pressed it to the newly formed scar. "Tell me what you feel."

Realisation dawned on L's face.

"No heartbeat. Am I a vampire?" Red, for once, was shocked speechless.

"..."

"Red-kun?"

"I don't think so. I'd never considered that possibility before. One thing's for sure, though. You're dead."

"How blunt."

"It's true. If it's any consolation, I'm dead too. My heart hasn't beaten in a long time."

"That's very interesting... Light-kun." Red - no, Light - paused, then relaxed.

"So... I guess you figured it out, then. What tipped you off?"

"You called Yagami-san 'father'."

"So, you were listening then? A pity - I would have loved to see the look on your face when you realised I've been deceiving you all this time. Red, Tsuki, Star..." Light began to rub at his face. The right side began to smudge and rub away, revealing a silver scar underneath the concealer he had worn for the disguise. "They're all me."

"I take it this 'state of death' prevents aging?"

"But of course. As of this day, L, you are immortal." L looked very carefully at Light. The small boy was clearly elated at what he had done - but there was a total lack of concern for the life of the other task force members. The dead bodies around the room attested to that.

Wait...

"Where are Aiber-san and Wedy-san?" Light gave a shrug.

"They wanted to die somewhere else. Did you want to look for them?"

"...later. Light, I know you well enough - your plan has been fulfilled, but you will have thought beyond this. What are you planning to do now?"

"Me?" Light's eyes lit up. "I'm going to take the Death Note and start using it."

"You would become another Kira?"

"In the strictest sense, no. Heart attacks aren't the way to use the note if you really are serious about it. Misa Amane made a flaw there. No... there are much better ways. 'Captured by the authorities - death by lethal injection' - write something like that in the notebook, and nobody will be any the wiser. With the public's semi-support of Kira, it would not look strange if countries started using the death penalty a little more. Kira as a public figure will disappear... but I will still judge." Realisation settled over L like a thick blanket.

"You wanted this from the very beginning, didn't you? Then why not just steal the notebook?"

"That would have broken the rules. I enjoyed our game very much, L, which is why I decided to keep you around. Now... everyone who knows the truth about the notebooks is dead. The rest of the world will never know how Kira kills."

"If I am to continue acting as L, then I will need to let someone know what transpired."

"That's exactly why you're not. As far as Wammy's House is concerned, L and Star both died today. Well, maybe not Star... not for all of Wammy's, that is."

L got to his feet slightly unsteadily.

"If you don't mind, Light, I'd like some time to think." He glanced over at Watari's body. Light shrugged and nodded.

"Sure. Just make sure you come to the right conclusion. I didn't save you just so we could be enemies, you know."

"So you would consider me your friend?"

"That depends, I think, on the choices you make now. Think carefully, L. Now, let's leave this room and find a better place to talk. Sol will clean it up." He headed for the door with L following, lost in thought.

Halfway down a corridor, L stopped. Aiber and Wedy were sitting up against the wall, close to each other. Their eyes were glassy orbs of blankness, staring lifelessly into the distance. Aiber's arm was around Wedy's shoulders, and both of them had tracks on their faces where tears had flowed.

"L?" Light was looking at him, oddly. "Are you coming with me or not?"

L made his mind up.

"Yes." Then he walk-shuffled on, past the corpses, falling into step behind Light. Back in the room they had left, a small computer, tucked away, counted down on a timer.

3

2

1

Transmission.

"L is dead." Mello's eyes widened, and he banged his hands on the desk.

"What did you just say!"

"L is dead."

"What happened? Did Kira kill him? C'mon Roger, you've got to tell me!" Near did not look up from the puzzle he was clicking pieces into.

"Probably."

"But he promised me he'd find Kira and execute him. Are you telling me he's been killed?"

"Mello!" Roger was interrupted by Near, speaking softly.

"There have been no Kira killings in the last twenty six days. It was a tie, then. A life for a life." Mello just looked at Near, eyes bulging out at how he could be so calm, then twisted back to Roger.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me this before!"

"We weren't sure. We thought L might be hiding."

"Gah!" Mello clutched his head in his hands, before banging them on Roger's desk once again. The sound was incredibly loud in the silent room, and Roger flinched. "What about the Kira case? Why didn't you tell me Kira was gone?"

Near pressed his palm to the puzzle he had just completed and quickly flipped it over, sliding his arm out and removing the cover to show the still-intact back. The word 'KIRA' was written there in a messy writing of red paint on the greyish-brown backing..

"Mello had not realised that Kira himself had stopped killing? I would have thought he would be watching the news." Slowly, piece by piece, he disassembled the puzzle, piece by piece, flipping each one over and positioning it properly on the puzzle-board. Mello just gaped at him, speechless with fury. Near did not seem to notice.

"So, which one did he choose? Me, or Near?"

"He hadn't decided yet, and now that he's gone, I'm afraid he won't be able to."

Somewhere, upstairs, another piece of bad news was being delivered. Matt could hardly believe it as he read the screen on his 3DS.

'If you have received this message, Matt, then I am dead. I wish for you to take up the task of becoming Star. The computer of your that I installed a virus on has been modified. It now contains a highly advanced semi-automatic computer program that will allow you to infiltrate any system in the world, not matter the security. Use the resources you now have well. Good luck.'

The words sat there innocently, black on a white screen, and Matt felt his sorrow turn to dread. His role model... the one he'd looked up to... was... gone. Forever. And now he was left with the responsibility of being a person he did not want to be. Had he not made that clear enough? ...Oh. And realisation flashed over Matt's face as he understood what Star meant him to do. Somewhere in the back of Matt's head a little voice questioned how odd it was for Star's message to have come at the exact time L's had (Matt knew there was only one reason for both Mello and Near to be called to the office), but he ignored it and left the room, 3DS still in hand.

"Mello, listen. You too, Near. Can't the two of you work together?"

"Alright. Sounds good." Near still didn't look up, although a small smile showed on his face.

"It'll never work Roger. You know we can't do this together. I don't get along with Near - we've always competed against each other." He began to grit his teeth in frustration. "Always."

Outside, a single leaf still hung on an otherwise barren tree. The wind battered it, but it held. Then, it let go, allowing the flow of bitter air to take it where it would. _Click._ The last piece went into Near's puzzle, revealing a completed 'L' on a white background.

"You know what? It's fine. Near should be the one to succeed L. He's not like me; he never gets emotional - he just uses his head, like it's a game or a puzzle." Mello's face became angrier.

"And as for me - I'm leaving this institution." He turned around and walked towards the door.

"Wait! Mello!"

"Don't waste your breath. I'm almost fifteen years old; it's time I started living my own life." There was a creak as the door opened and closed, then silence.

Mello stopped outside Roger's office, glaring at Matt who was leaning on the wall, looking at the screen of his 3DS.

"What do you want, Matt? Get outta my way." He tried to push past, but was stopped by a hand gripping his own. With a click Matt flipped the 3DS shut and stowed it away in his pocket.

"Mello. I have a proposition for you."

One young initiate of the Cult of Stars - she couldn't have been more than fifteen years old - sat, keeping a silent vigil through the stormy night, broken only by the mutterings of prayer.

"All and Only, Chosen One, please come back to us..." The clouds covered the stars as she stared out of the window, face lit only by a flickering candle in the dark.

"All and Only, Chosen One, please come back to us..." Gradually, the drumming of rain stopped, and the sky began to clear. One by one, the stars began to shine again.

"All and Only, Chosen One, please come back to us..." The desk lamp next to him switched on. Startled, she looked around to see what had caused it - but there was nobody there. Then another light switched on, the one on the other side of her. The room lit up as the main light was turned on by a mysterious force..

"A sign..." the initiate breathed in awe as she stared out the window where every single light in Tokyo began to shine - hotel rooms and apartments, public offices and vehicles... and then she was running to the head of the cult, Teru Mikami, because she had just witnessed first hand an act of the All and Only, and she had to spread the news as fast as possible.

When the two people finally returned to the window, they saw that it had been opened. By what, they didn't know. A letter was left just inside the room.

'I thank you for your hospitality, but I am afraid I must return to where I have came from. My stay with you is over. Rest assured, you will be rewarded when it is you who are guests in my house.

*'  
A single raven-coloured feather lay next to the page. Outside the window, Tokyo was lit up like a whole galaxy of stars, both from above and from below.

As the sun rose over the skyline, it was watched by two figures from the edge of the roof of a high building. L and Light sat in silence, but it was amicable. The sky above was a brilliant bright blue, and the storm of last night seemed to have passed.

"That was quite a feat you pulled off there. You didn't need to do all that just as a demonstration of your powers. Although it was quite ironic, considering your name, Light."

"Mhm. No, it was a celebration, I think."

"Of my death? Of you winning our game?" L wouldn't be surprised if it was, but Light gave the tiniest, most imperceptible of winces and shook his head. Then he turned it to stare at the dawn, staining the sky red with the beams of sunlight, casting long shadows on the streets below.

"Of the beginning of a new era." Light held Rem's old Death Note in his lap. He had found it among the sand that was the only remains of the Shinigami. L was the owner of the other notebook, but this one? This was all his. He had his own personal weapon of mass destruction, lying there innocuously in the morning sun.

"Give it a few months, perhaps, to let the world recover from the scar of what Kira has done. But then..." Looking up at the sun, he held his hand out and a black raven glided down from the sky to land on his palm. He set Sol down on his left, and looked at where L sat to his right, then down to the city that spread out below them, full of humans that needed to be judged for their crimes.

"We will become the Gods of this new world."


	33. Chapter 33 (Epilogue)

_...Three years later..._

All was deathly silent in what used to be the Kira Task Force building. That was, except for the munching.

Munch.

Munch.

Munch.

"Will you STOP THAT? I'm trying to think here!" Light spun around from his position on the floor to glare at L, who looked back with a totally deadpan face.

"But Light-kun, the consumption of sweets raises my cognitive ability by more than twenty percentage points."

"That may have been true while you were alive, but I doubt it's true now. Everything tastes like cardboard to us anyway, so what's the point?"

"You need more sugar, Light-kun." L dug around in his bag of candy and pulled out a chocolate chip cookie. He threw it and it landed, with unerring accuracy, in Light's lap. On top of the Death Note that was open before him. Light picked it up and did his best to wipe the crumbs and grease off the blank white paper.

Really, L could be so utterly childish sometimes.

"You're one to talk, Light-kun." There was humour in L's voice.

"It wasn't my fault that my body stopped aging at five." This had grown to be quite the sore spot for Light, due to L's constant teasing. He sighed and started eating the cookie, thinking that maybe it would help with his current problem. No dice. The paper sat before him, blank as ever.

"Does Light-kun have a little case of writer's block?" Light didn't have to answer - neither did L have to ask. He just enjoyed calling out Light's weaknesses. "Well, I've finished all the research you asked me to do on the Dutch serial killer. That might help give you inspiration." Light looked up in interest, before his eyes went blank as he used his powers to scan the information on L's computer. He only needed to look once, before returning to his body to digest what he had learned.

Ten minutes later, after working out the details in his mind, Light began to write. He left a space for the man's name at the beginning, only filling in his initials.

* * *

_S_ S_ (henceforth known as S). Cause of death: ingestion of suicide pill._

* * *

There was something captivating about the way the ink flowed onto the paper. With every stroke of the pen, Light brought forth a story from his mind into reality. He was in control, and what he wrote had the power to shape and alter the world as he, its protector and god, saw fit.

L, who had been listening in on Light's thoughts, asked a silent question. Light replied out loud.

"Yes, if you want to. My plan revolves around you anyway, so you should get some say in what happens." He kept on writing, taking little to no notice of the way L's body slumped in the chair as its occupant left for the phone lines.

* * *

_The murder case involving S is brought to the attention of the detective Mello and his friend Matt (henceforth collectively known as M)._

* * *

Matt blinked and looked over his shoulder. Nobody was there.

"Could'a sworn I felt someone watching me..." He turned back to his computer and rubbed his eyes to make himself more awake, all the time staring at the screen. The numbers and letters were swimming in and out of focus and his head was swimming with them. Perhaps it was time to finally admit defeat for the day, pack up, and go to sleep.

He had been trying to crack the code Star had left him for pretty much the last three years without success. Nothing conventional worked. The code acted like a virus in itself and was so insanely complex Matt had to wonder what kind of a person Star must have had to be in order to create it. Some of it was legible to Matt, but some was just beyond what he could actually comprehend. He knew the basic structure of what it did - the thing essentially had an instruction manual left for him so he could use it to infiltrate systems - but he had no clue how it went about hacking everything. He was trying to find out.

Behind the tired teenager, a transparent shadow lent down and whispered silently in Matt's ear.

"Dutch murder... Kira copycat... why don't you search it on google?"

Matt yawned and looked over his shoulder again, but there was still nobody there.

"It's official, then. I'm going insane." He exited the program and was about to shut down when he got a strange urge to open an internet browser. "I wonder if there are any good cases lately... Mello keeps complaining that the ones I find aren't interesting enough." On a hunch, he typed in the words 'Kira Copycat Murder' and clicked the search button.

Thousands of results flashed up on the screen. Most were Kira's fansites where his adoring fanbase were saying that if they had Kira's power, they would do the same thing. Matt ignored them. He had hated Kira ever since the man (it was probably a man, right?) had taken his idol to the grave with him.

One result in particular caught his eye, though. It was a news article in Dutch. Matt was fluent, but he didn't bother reading it in its native language - Star's translation software was way too good to waste.

**"New serial Kira on the loose!**

**'Watashi wa Kira dess' - this was the note found near the remains of a white caucasian male in Dudenpark in Forest, Brussels. The note roughly translates to 'I am Kira', referencing the serial killer who left the world in terror three years ago. The body - which has yet to be identified - was discovered near to the highest point in Brussels. It is believed that this may be a symbolic act..."**

* * *

_M joins the investigation next morning. With the help of an underground crime syndicate and taking information via hacking from the investigation group named Corpus, M discovers S's true identity._

* * *

"Mello, I've got a new case to solve. Some idiot is trying to emulate Kira." Mello's eyes went wide at the information.

"What the... have the heart attacks started again? Did sheep-boy put you up to this?"

"Nah, it's nothing like that. Just a copycat crime." Mello relaxed a little. It seemed even the mention of Kira was enough to set him on edge. "I doubt Near has even taken any notice. He's in the states right now, working on some terrorist threat in Orlando, right? This stuff is just kiddy stuff compared to that. But," Matt hastened to explain after Mello began to scowl at the insult "it's got the potential to go really big. One killing doesn't draw much attention, but what if this guy goes serial? The way this victim was murdered suggests a psychopath. They can't even identify the friggin body, he's mutilated so much! It's possible the killer could continue. Can you imagine the media explosion if we get another serial murderer calling himself Kira?"

"Hey, I guess you're right there. Sheep-boy will definitely get dragged in. It'll be Kira and L all over again except both will be utterly pathetic copycats."

"Exactly. So we should get cracking on this now, get a head start before Near. Imagine the look on his face when he realises Star solved it first!" By now, Mello was positively raring to go.

"So, what do you have yet?"

"I took the liberty of hacking into this group called Corpus - they're tracking another serial killer in the area and they think it could be the same guy. Here, I'll show you..."

* * *

_While working on the Disney World bombings, Near receives information on the same murder cases. However, he is unable to make headway on the case and eventually asks M for help._

* * *

"Near, are you sure this is the right way to go about contacting Star?" Near looked up from where he was playing with a train set on the floor and nodded.

"Star can't be contacted by any conventional methods. While this method is not infallible, there is no other way to initiate contact. I would not worry about Star refusing to speak to us. He is arrogant and will see this as a way to indirectly insult me by providing us with the needed information. It is only the question of finding him that we need to concern ourselves with." With that said, Near went back to playing with the train set. A few seconds passed before he spoke up again.

"I do not wish to sacrifice my pride for the sake of the case, but it must be done. I will not allow L's memory to be defiled by this criminal." The words were said quietly, but everyone in the room heard them.

'Everyone' included a shadow that nobody else could see. It flew over to Near and silently whispered in his ear.

"Contact the Corpus group. That's your best hope of finding him." Near stilled, then looked up again. He locked eyes with a member of his task force.

"What was the name of the group investigating the Mons serial killings, that considered the possibility of this murder being one of them?"

"I-I'm not sure. Let me look." There was the sound of clicking as a keyboard was hurriedly typed on. "They call themselves Corpus."

"Good. Contact them. Star will notice anything we say to them."

"How do you know that? There's no evidence!" Near's eyes glinted with a strange bluish light and he smiled softly.

"Intuition never fails me. Contact them. If we're wrong, the most it will cost us is an apology."

* * *

_Matt agrees to help Near._

* * *

Matt stared at his computer screen. There, on the database that housed the top-secret investigation, was a message to him. From L.

'How the hell did Near find me?' Quickly, he opened the message and scanned the contents. They only made him more shocked. Near wanted help? From him? From Mello? Granted, he didn't know it was Mello, but still...

**"I do not wish to work with you, but I have been unable to find the killer. Given time I am sure I would be able to but this case must be taken care of quickly, before it escalates. I do not want the names of L and of Star to be tainted by Kira's image once again."**

If Mello knew, he'd never agree to the idea... helping Near went against every code he had. But still, he knew who it was that had committed the crime. Mello had deduced it from the evidence he had gathered. Could he really just sit on this information, just leaving the killer at large, until the case made itself huge enough that Mello would get an ego boost by pronouncing it solved?

"Give the killer's identity to Near."

Matt looked around. Still, there was nobody there... he was losing it. Many times now he had thought he had heard a voice or felt a presence, guiding and guarding him in his new role. Once he had even thought he had seen a shape... but he had been sleep-deprived. There was no way anything was really there. It was just stress.

He typed out a message to Near in a textbox he opened on his computer. In Near's HQ, one of the computers would flash up a created text file. In the message, he wrote five words.

**"The killer is S_ S_."**

Once he had finished, he checked that Mello was not into the room before breathing out heavily and hitting the send button. Mello wouldn't be too angry at him. Hopefully.

* * *

_Near organises a search of S's house using his authority as L. However, Mello becomes angry at Matt for divulging his conclusion to Near. Mello attempts to use his underground connections to warn S._

* * *

-Knock Knock-

The man who shall only be known as S opened his door to see a letter left on the doorstep. It was late in the evening, and the post wasn't supposed to be delivered until tomorrow morning. Curious, he bent down and picked up the letter. It didn't look special. It had his name and address typed on the front. S looked around. He couldn't see anyone in the darkness. Slowly, he backed into his house, shutting the door behind him.

The letter was all typed - there was no handwriting to give away the sender.

**"S_ S_,**

**I know that you committed the Kira murder. L knows too. This is a warning. All your mail is being searched and your telephone is bugged. This is the only way I could contact you. Tomorrow morning you will be arrested by the police unless you escape.**  
**I have arranged for transport to a safe house where you may stay for a week. You will be picked up at midnight. Pack everything to need to go on the run. After a week, you will be on your own."**

S looked at the letter, trying to deduce if it was some sort of joke. However, nobody was supposed to know about what he had done. It couldn't be a prank.

Suddenly realising exactly how serious the situation was, S stuffed the letter in his pocket and ran upstairs. Grabbing some clothes and a water bottle, he stuffed them into a rucksack and continued packing. Some food, some money...

Eventually he was all packed. There was only one last item. Opening the medicine cabinet, S dug around at the very back until he found a small plastic container. Inside was an even smaller pill.

'I will not let them get me. If I am caught, I am a criminal. If I am a criminal, I deserve to die.'

* * *

_At ten minutes to midnight, S hears another knock on his door._

* * *

S swallowed thickly, then made his way down the stairs, rucksack slung over his back. The knock came louder. He opened the door.

"Get on the floor! Get on the floor!" S jumped back in surprise. Those were police. He spun around and ran up the stairs.

"How the heck did they get here so fast! The letter said they were coming tomorrow!" Slamming the door to the bedroom behind him, he shoved the bed up against it to buy himself a little more time.

* * *

_However, Near has deduced Mello's plan. He takes action to prevent it happening._

* * *

-Many miles away-

"Near, what made you think that the killer would be forewarned of the arrest? There is no way they could have known about it ahead of time. Why did you move the time forward?"

"Intuition never fails me."

* * *

_While in his room, S becomes suicidal out of a wish not to be captured._

* * *

S dug in the front pocket of his rucksack and pulled out the plastic capsule.

* * *

_He takes a suicide pill_

* * *

S popped open the capsule and withdrew the pill from inside. Raising it to his lips...

* * *

_and crushes it between his teeth. He dies before the police open the door, so they are unable to see what killed him before they do an autopsy._

* * *

Light smiled as, with a final stroke, he finished off what he had been working on all evening. Now, all he had to do was write in the man's name at the top of the page and the story would be set in motion six minutes and forty seconds later.

However, one thing made him pause. L's last request...

Light took up his pen and added another paragraph.

* * *

_While dying, S sees a spectre hovering near his bed. He believes it is Kira's ghost, come to punish him for what he has done._

* * *

As the room began to swim in S's vision, he was filled with the strange sensation that somebody was watching him. Turning his head weakly, he saw a strange shadow standing over him. It solidified from a greyish blur into a man with storm grey eyes and a messy mop of black hair.

"A-are you... K-Kira?" The words left his tongue dry and cracked, and his breath shuddered out of him. The ghost merely stood there, staring at him. Its eyes seemed to accuse him of something...

When the door to the room burst open, the first thing the police saw was S's body lying spread-eagled on the bed. One of them performed CPR, but it had no effect. He was dead.

"How did he die?"

"I don't know..." Two of the officers exchanged frightened looks.

"You think... you think it was a heart attack?"

* * *

Light finished and then wrote the man's name at the top. Then he flipped the notebook closed and stood up from his half-lotus position on the floor. There was one thing that he himself needed to do.

"Sol." A black cat slunk into the room. "Watch over the notebook while I'm gone. I don't want L hiding it from me again." The cat nodded and twirled itself around Light's leg. Light smiled and sat back down, holding the cat in his tiny arms. Then his eyes went blank and he flopped lifelessly backwards onto the cushion. The black cat sat silent vigil over his body, lit only by the bluish-white light of the computer screen at the side of the room.

* * *

-A few days later, after S's death-

"Hey Mello, there's one thing I still don't get." Mello glared back at Matt. He still hadn't forgiven him for tipping off Near.

"What? How you would betray me like that? 'Cause I don't get that either."

"Just forget about it, alright! No, there's another thing. How come when Near sent that timing change to the Dutch police, I didn't pick it up?"

"...what?" Mello looked interested now.

"I had the program watching everything about the case. We should have known the police were going to intercept us. But Star's program didn't pick it up. In fact, it still hasn't. See?" Matt pointed to the screen.

"Yeah, Matt, translate it into English, please. I don't speak Hackerese."

"It's like it disappeared off the internet. Or never was there in the first place. Except it was, 'cause it happened. Normally only I have the power to do something like that. It's almost as if... wait, did you hear that?" Matt spun around, scanning the empty air behind him. Mello looked at him oddly.

"Hear what, Matt?"

"Just thought I heard... something. Anyway, I guess it's probably nothing. Forget I said anything."

* * *

**End.**

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story. This includes X59, the Guest, Hat O' Doom, Dori, OneSilverWing9, Nin-in-Hiding, Amynous, Anonymouse (are they the same two people?), Erin, and anyone else who leaves reviews after I post this chapter. You've been very supportive. Thank you again.

This will be the last chapter of Shooting Star. I felt inspired to write an epilogue and thought I ought to post it. I may do another story for this fandom - to be honest, I think the way that the two series cross over is just begging for more stories - but I have nothing planned.

Some information I couldn't include in the story:

Sol isn't actually an OC. I mean, his character was pretty much made up, but take a look at Wedy's death in the anime. See anyone familiar? As for those of you familiar with Ghost Trick, it shouldn't be too hard to realise what 'Sol' is a shortening of. Yes, I realise his tricks aren't quite the same, but that's author's licence. I was going to do a few chapters explaining exactly what happened to him, but I never got around to it.

Also, the Kira copycat murder case is in fact real. I mean absolutely no disrespect whatsoever to anyone who may have been affected. I just... saw it on Wikipedia and it inspired me.

A word about L's Ghost Tricks - did you ever wonder how Near had those flashes of random information which allowed him to correctly deduce, for example, that X-Kira was in fact Teru Mikami? Also, remember the vision of L that appeared to Light as he died. I'll leave you to speculate on the rest.

Thank you once more. Thank you thank you thank you. This is Nytro, signing off.


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